Caged
by StayFreeG3
Summary: The whole relationship stemmed from his grudge with Deku, but he never thought he'd actually end up falling for the girl.
1. Sleeping Sickness

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copyrighted material.**

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 **Caged**

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 **A/N:** Hello readers! Welcome to my first multi-chapter fic for this pair! Of course, this story will be centered around the idea of them coming together, so if you don't ship it then you don't have to continue reading! But, if you do then **WELCOME** , I am so glad to share this with you.

Few things:

1) This fic's rating will probably change from T to M at some point in the future as it progresses for fluff/smut, and other purposes 😊

2) Bakugou isn't called 'King of Explosions' for nothing so, buckle up for some crude/foul language from my favorite blonde boy, he's got a bad mouth.

3) There _**ARE**_ spoilers for those who are anime-only people, and this plot doesn't completely follow the events in the manga, it's just loosely centered around them.

I sincerely hope you enjoy this story. Please leave a review, a comment, or any other suggestions below!

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Katsuki Bakugou feared nothing.

In fact, his faith in his ability to completely fucking destroy all the extras who opposed his rise to the top of society, often led him into deeper trouble than he intended. But, no matter what, he always came out more-or-less unharmed.

Because that was what heroes did…

They won.

However, this ungodly pride he possessed didn't make him immune from everything in a world filled with the supernatural. And on this particular morning, he found himself unable to convince his body to lift the heavy blankets shrouding his overheated body off of his utterly drenched form.

"Shit." He mumbled groggily, closing his narrowed amber eyes, as his bleach blonde eyebrows knit themselves into his typical scowl.

Perturbed, he glared at the ceiling with all the menace he could muster. Punishing it for his own irritation he'd caused by over-working the muscles in his arms.

A cough racked throughout his body, annoyed, exhausted, and frustrated from the pain of the small spasm.

He was well-aware he'd overdone it in training the previous day. He could feel it in every gait of his walk back to the dorms with Shitty Hair, who had been chastising him for being 'too manly', whatever the fuck that meant.

This sickly state didn't often plague the hot-head, but ever since he was little, when he pushed himself beyond his limits, he would wake up like this.

Pathetic, lethargic, thirsty…and _angry_ beyond his normal scale of bad temperament.

A resounding knock at the door caught his attention, and he shifted his sluggish gaze over to it.

"Hey Bakugou, saw you didn't make it to breakfast this morning, you coming or what?" Kirishima questioned, poking a head full of red spikes into his room without warning.

 _Didn't the little shit have any boundaries_? He thought, as his bad mood festered at the intrusion.

"Fuck off." Bakugou groaned half-heartedly and flipped the other way so he didn't have to stare at the deep red tone of Kirishima's dyed hair.

"I'll tell Aizawa-sensei that the little princess is getting his beauty sleep, chou!" Kirishima taunted in a gushing tone, and then grinned as the hunches of Bakugou's slumped shoulders visibly raised. His fists sweating, begging for him to ignite his quirk.

Having successfully stirred Bakugou's wrath, the blonde managed to summon all the strength he could…

…to glare…

…venomously.

The latter simply chuckled and shut the door behind him, chirping down the hallway about how Bakugou wasn't going to be in class to some of his other classmates.

Katsuki waited until he heard the audible footsteps cease and then heaved himself up, only to splutter into a mess of limbs on the carpeted floor beneath him.

He moaned but welcomed the gush of sweat-free cold air that settled over his aggravated skin.

However, before long he was scrambling to climb back into his bed and retreat to the warmth of his covers.

This day was going to be a bitch.

* * *

Ochako Uraraka was a simple girl who enjoyed the simple things of life; and even more so, the free things of life.

"Um, is it possible that I could just pay you for this tomorrow?" the brown-eyed girl asked innocently, batting her dark lashes at the man standing behind the coffee cart, shamelessly flirting.

"No need, pretty girls like you can drink for free." She giggled nervously as the older man leered over her well-formed figure, and quickly scurried towards classroom 1-A once the hot beverage was securely in her hands.

Uraraka liked this coffee stand, they made her morning wake-up easier.

She often pondered whether or not her pursuit in being a hero for money was the most ethical thing to do, but one phone-call from her parents made her doubts shrink faster than Iida could run.

Speaking of Iida, he didn't seem too quick to condemn her goals, and even more impressively neither did Izuku. If anybody knew what the right thing to do was, it was him.

In fact, a small part of her wanted to believe that Deku admired her tenacity…after all he was who inspired her to be more courageous.

She took a sip of her coffee and let out a long sigh. She needed to stop thinking about these things so early in the day.

Her teachers had already been on her case about spacing out in class.

She tilted her head upwards and looked at the morning sky.

The clouds shrouded the magnificent spread of blue above her in wisps of white. She briefly wished she could speed up time to watch the twinkling glow that the stars emitted in the night, breaking the dark expanse like sparklers on the fourth of July.

She loved trying to push the limit of time she could float her own body without spewing her guts by studying the night time constellations.

"Watch out! Uraraka!" she paused immediately and lowered her chin back to its normal position. Her brown eyes widened as she took notice of the pole planted only a few centimeters from her face.

 _So much for not spacing out_ , she thought, flustered.

Her cheeks reddened with embarrassment as Izuku jogged over to her, looking as concerned as usual.

"S-Sorry Deku I just got lost in thought I guess…" she laughed, trying to brush off her own awkward feelings that seemed to creep up her throat whenever Deku came near her.

"Oh! N-no it's okay! It would just be bad if you hurt yourself Uraraka!" he stuttered, running a hand through the curly, green-tinted locks.

He was a good _friend_ , she reminded herself.

They walked together to class, chatting about small things. The weather, upcoming tests, breakfast rotations. But, Ochako found even the most mundane talks with Izuku to be comforting in the midst of their chaotic lives as students in the hero course.

It wasn't long before Iida caught up with them too, completing their little clique.

As she walked into the same old classroom that she did every day, tailing right behind Izuku and Iida as per her routine, she felt something was amiss in the rather pleasant chatter that was settled over the atmosphere of the room.

Tsuyu was interrogating Deku about the assignments due that period, ribbiting in between words, and Hagakure was shamelessly, at least from what Uraraka could see, bending over Ojiro's desk to whisper something in his ear that made his tail twitch.

Mineta was giggling with a perverted smile and showing something, most likely vulgar, to Kaminari, who was huddled next to the boy, blushing like a twelve-year-old girl at whatever images were flashing across Mineta's phone.

 _What was it?_ She thought, her eyes narrowing.

Her eyes landed on Mina, Sero, and Kirishima, who were congregated in the back of the classroom joking around loudly and having arm-wrestling matches for sport.

A lightbulb dinged in Uraraka's mind.

There were no sweeping declarations being made, or any threats of violence being shouted.

 _Of course, that's why it's so calm in here_. She realized.

Bakugou wasn't here.

"Morning." Aizawa grumbled monotonously, as he rose from his standard yellow sleeping bag, sucking up an entire juice pouch in the process as he cracked open his bloodshot eyes.

"Today you will all be pairing up and…" Sensei's instructions faded in Ochako's ears as he scanned the classroom intensely. His eyes narrowed on the empty desk behind Izuku.

His attention to a nervous-looking Kirishima who threw up his hands in an apologetic manner.

"Sorry Sensei! I tried to get Bakugou to come but he seemed like he wasn't feeling well!" the red-head explained, a smile settling over his unnerved expression. Aizawa then turned his glare towards her.

"Oi, Uraraka." Ochako jumped, turning her full focus to her teacher. Why was he getting on to her now?

"Yes, sensei?" she chirped, trying not to let her anxiety shine through her expression, her sensitive cheeks heating up.

"You'll be paired up with Bakugou for today's assignment." He deadpanned, a hint of irritation present in his tone.

Her brows raised.

"Um but…Bakugou isn't here…Sensei…" she chided quietly, her eyes diverting to random objects and faces throughout the classroom as she faltered under the harsh presence of Eraserhead's authority.

"Not my problem." Aizawa mumbled, and continued his explanation of the day's task.

The paired students were supposed to turn in a one-page paper written about each other, on what it takes to be a good hero. It was an exercise to bring the class closer together, and allow them to understand that every hero has a different drive and motive for why they chose to be a hero.

He explained that he purposefully paired people together that had extremely differing personalities to ensure the most diverse cooperation possible, he eyed Uraraka dangerously with the last bit.

 _Well…you nailed it._ Ochako thought as she pursed her lips in a slight pout.

She wasn't particularly fond or particularly afraid of Bakugou. Her frustration with him rested mostly in his lack of kindness towards Deku.

But…she did believe that there was more to him than his bad temper, though he rarely showed enough of himself for their peers to notice that. Uraraka had always been perceptive.

He was complicated, that was for sure.

Whenever Uraraka had asked Deku about the reason behind the feud they had, he seemed to always be at a loss as to how to explain why Katsuki was so volatile towards him.

It made her heart feel heavy to see the pain in Deku's face when he spoke about the blonde, she wanted it to change. Deku wanted it to change too, it was obvious.

So why did Bakugou have such a stick up his butt when came to it?

After Aizawa dismissed them, the class to split off into their paired groups. Feeling bored Uraraka stiffened when she felt a slight tap on her shoulder from behind.

She turned around to see an overly-enthusiastic Kirishima standing there. She offered a warm smile.

"Yo!" he greeted, a huge, infectious grin plastered on his rugged features. She reciprocated the greeting with her own.

"Hey Kirishima, good morning!" she threw back boisterously. He laughed lightly, and then made a sort of guilty face, his brows drooping slightly. A hand shot to the back of his head, rubbing through the spikes fervently.

Kirishima tended to look away when he was uncomfortable talking about something.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, but it looks like you drew the short end of the stick today. Bakugou is pretty sick back at the dorms, and not too keen on anybody being around." He informed her softly, his tone full of sympathy.

She smirked, undaunted by the challenge.

"Oh? The Baku-rage aura is especially bad today huh? Guess I'll just have to manage!" She replied optimistically, trying to lighten the boy's mood.

He laughed with a new-found gusto and then shoved his large hand into his pocket, fishing for something.

"I admire your spirit! Also, I wanted to give you this-!" he said, presenting a shiny metal key to her.

"-this is so you can get into his room if he decides to be…well you know difficult. Just because he doesn't care about something doesn't mean you should get a bad grade!" He joked, half-serious. Geez, she had it in for her with this assignment.

Uraraka thanked a very empathetic Kirishima and accepted the aid, and then began trudging off towards the direction of the boy's dorms on campus.

 _Bakugou is lucky to have such a loyal friend_ , she thought absentmindedly, admiring the blooming cherry blossoms of the sakura trees surrounding her.

Kirishima was always supporting Bakugou no matter the occasion, the boy never seemed to let anything daunt him either. She wondered what kind of backstory he had that had fostered such a bright personality inside him.

Kirishima was one of her favorite people outside of Deku and Iida to be around. His cheery attitude was contagious.

She wondered what kind of person Bakugou was, and if there were things, she couldn't see from a distance, that drew people like Kirishima in.

She guessed, with the assignment they'd been given, she would begin to find out somewhat.

U.A. was a big place. But Ochako honestly didn't mind it.

She liked the feeling of the sun beaming down on her pale skin, and the ability to be on her feet instead of complacent in a desk being lectured by some teacher who clearly would rather spend his day in a cocoon.

She was fond of Aizawa though.

By the time she'd found the Bakugou's room, it was like the very air had sunken to the ground and died. She shuddered, positive she'd be blasted out of the doorway seconds later by its temperamental inhabitant if she didn't act cautiously.

At first, she gingerly knocked on the door wanting to allow enough time for Bakugou to get decent just in case he wasn't. But after she waited a minute or two and heard no audible acknowledgment of her warning, she stuck the gifted key Kirishima had given her into the lock and let the door creak open slowly.

"Bakugou?" she said quietly, but quickly found her jaw going slack.

There were several blankets and various items of clothing strewn across the room. She ventured further into the dorm past the doorway and spotted her classmate slumped against the side of his bed, his body angled in an odd way with the majority of him on the floor.

She furrowed her brows slightly concerned by the image. Bakugou didn't appear to be conscious. His cheeks were a bright crimson, and the only thing covering him was a pair of boxers and a blanket that was slew carelessly over a portion of his upper torso. He looked like he was shivering.

"Bakugou?" she questioned more insistently, keeping her voice calm.

When he once again didn't respond, she came close to him, kneeling down on her knees and shyly poking his hardened bicep with her padded finger.

Not a peep.

At first, she smiled deviously, considering drawing a fake moustache on him or giving him a temporary tattoo of a heart somewhere on his vulnerable form. But, eventually she decided against it, for fear of being decimated by an explosion in the future.

Instead, she pressed all ten of her finger pads into Bakugou's chest, initiating her Quirk to float the blonde off of the ground and slowly guided his limp body towards the bed, lining him in a proper position before releasing.

She pulled his black and red comforter over his scantily clad body, all the way up to his neck keeping her eyes fixated on his face. She was oddly drawn to the sight of his sleeping expression.

Bakugou nearly always wore a half-crazed grin, or a deadly scowl, or sometimes a combination of the two.

But, in this state of sickness he looked…somewhat peaceful.

The hard lines of his eyebrows were smoothed. His mouth didn't look outwardly threatening when his sharp teeth were covered by his lips. In fact, Ochako even thought he looked kind of handsome, at least while he wasn't trying to kill or threaten anybody.

She slapped her cheeks with her hands.

 _'What're you thinking dummy? This is Bakugou!'_ she yelled internally.

She shrugged her backpack off her shoulders to the space of the wall beside his desk.

She found herself extremely disturbed by the state of his dorm room as she looked around, taking in the full effect.

Bakugou hadn't participated when they'd held a contest for who had the best room in the building, so this had been her first time, maybe anybody's besides Kirishima, seeing his room.

His space was surprisingly neat, there were no random clothes covering his floor. She did stifle a chuckle at a few miscellaneous scorch marks along the walls, but what really caught her attention was the worn-down poster taped to the wall opposite of the foot of his bed.

It looked like it was several years old, the edges were torn and frayed, but what made it so special, was that it was of All Might.

Was Bakugou a secret fanboy like Deku?

As she scanned the room again, she noticed some other small figurines of All Might and a few random playing cards with the number one heroes' image.

It warmed her heart in an odd way, to see this private thing in Bakugou secluded life. It was kind of humbling.

She was stirred from her introspection by a loud moan from behind her.

She turned to find that Bakugou's features were strained, his lips quivering. He seemed to be in pain.

"Uhh…h-hold on!" Ochako stuttered and frantically looked around her for something to ease his discomfort, she rushed to her backpack and pulled out an unopened bottle of water, and grabbed a smaller towel hanging on a nail in Bakugou's wall.

She carefully poured a generous amount of the cooler fluid onto the fluffy material and then approached her groaning classmate.

"Damnit…fucking shit…" she heard him curse under his breath as he tried to sit upwards. Ochako gently pushed him back down surprised at his complacency. She patted his sweat-beaded forehead in soothing slow rhythm, sighing in relief when his grumbling ceased and the tension in his face relaxed once again.

She looked on as he cracked his blood-red eyes open slightly, they reminded her of slits as he eyed her hovering presence briefly before closing them shut again.

"Mom…thanks…" he muttered deliriously. She smiled in amusement.

 _How cute._ She thought off-handedly before realizing her mistake, and slapping her palms against her cheeks again.

It was pretty bizarre to see Bakugou in a state that made him no more threatening than a butterfly, but also to be mistaken as his Mom would make for a great teasing point should she ever need it.

This whole situation was making her feel kind of weird though.

Another hiss from the spiky-haired student warranted sympathy from Ochako. She sighed and pulled her class materials over by Bakugou's bedside, she didn't want to leave him alone and she needed to go ahead and begin writing their shared paper anyway.

For the most part, as Ochako worked diligently on her homework, Bakugou slept soundlessly, muttering an incoherent grumble here and there. He did act restless a few times however.

She only paused in her meticulous typing, when Bakugou eventually tossed his blankets off of himself and onto…her head.

She pulled the woven material off of her now ruffled hair and straightened it out before moving the covering to put back over the hothead.

Before doing so she couldn't help but notice of delicate lines chiseled into Bakugou's broad chest and well-muscled abdomen.

The ridges indicating his strength stretched across his arms and biceps, which were definitely larger than the average size for boys their age. But what _really_ caught her attention was the marred pieces of flesh littering over his body, accompanied by several nasty purple and bluish bruises pounded into him.

Just how hard had Bakugou been pushing himself all this time?

She gingerly ran her fingers over a particularly large discolored spot that covered the left side of his ribs, hiding under his arm, almost like a wing.

She wondered if he'd gotten them from overusing his quirk.

Most projection type-users like him typically went through stages of self-harm when their quirk first manifested. But his injuries, though not as severe as she had seen Deku's, were still pretty intense.

As she continued to run her hands across Bakugou's tender body, she gulped feeling like she was the one coming down with a fever and curiously placed a wandering hand over his stomach without the pretense of assessing his injuries.

She felt her mouth drop slightly.

It was fascinatingly hard and the lines were addicting to trace over. She definitely needed to go on a diet.

The indentations were deep and smooth. But once she realized what she was doing was wrong, she quickly withdrew her touch, threw the blanket across him, and finally retreated to the sanctity of her laptop, embarrassed and unnerved by her lustful behavior.

The flush in her cheeks dissipated as she returned her thoughts to the subject at hand.

 _Why did Bakugou want to be a hero?_

She looked over her shoulder to eye the unconscious boy behind her. Ochako frowned, knowing this was supposed to be a team exercise meant to bring her and her clear opposite laying behind her closer together. But she didn't think the blonde would be in any shape to rouse from his comatose sleep anytime soon, she could always ask him to edit her words later anyway.

She looked around his expanse once again, taking into note the obvious clues to his inspiration. She knew Bakugou was tenacious and dedicated.

He was always focused on winning.

After collecting her data Ochako set to work, writing her best guess about why the great Bakugou, Katsuki wanted to become the number one hero.

* * *

Bakugou awoke suddenly to a harsh punch against his right shoulder, forcing him to grit his teeth from the shooting pain. And once the ringing in his ears, caused by his equally as anonymous fury subsided, and his red-vision cleared, he saw the distinguished features of Kirishima above him, yelling for him to wake up.

The vein in his forehead bulged and he gritted his teeth as he planted a foot on the red-heads stomach.

"SHUT THE HELL UP!" he barked, sending his friend onto the floor of his bedroom with a dull and satisfying thud.

"Hey now, no need to be so feisty." Kirishima taunted, rubbing his smarting ass from the force of the impact.

"What do you want?" he huffed angrily, annoyed by the harsh glare of the sunlight from the blinds of his window beside him.

"Well I was checking to make sure that you're still alive dumbass." He retorted sarcastically, standing up casually and slinging a hand to cup Bakugou's still sore shoulder.

As the hot-head became increasingly aware of his surroundings, Katsuki began to get confused.

Something in the air seemed off, it smelled too much like cotton candy and rainbows for his taste.

"Why the fuck does it smell like a goddamn unicorn in here Kirishima?" Bakugou growled lowly, his eyes straining from the pressure of his scowl.

"Huh? Well maybe cause Uraraka was in here yesterday…" the red-head trailed, placing a hand to scratch the underside of his chin.

 _Uraraka? What the hell?_ Bakugou thought frantically.

He began trying to ask questions but Kirishima explained what was going on before he had the chance to open his mouth.

"Yeah sorry man! You just looked really out of it yesterday morning so I gave her your key! I figured you'd be awake by the time class was over, you don't remember?"

Did he just say, yesterday?

"Haha man you slept from yesterday morning all the way to today, it's already eight 'o'clock sharp!" Kirishima chided, taking obvious satisfaction in his friend's deep confusion as to what the hell was happening.

He was beginning to feel the urge the disintegrate the entire dwelling in spite, but decided against it.

"Aizawa assigned us this 'why you chose to become a hero' paper and paired you and Uraraka up. But seeing as you were incapacitated, I guess she thought it would be better just to take care of you and write her own version of what she thought you'd say...you know minus the bad language." Kirishima continued, thinking out loud.

"The hell you mean 'bad language', I have the mouth of a saint, you damn shitty hair…" he spat.

Kirishima let out a chuckle.

Bakugou inhaled deeply, picking up traces of floral perfume or some other kind of girly shit.

He needed to shower and get the oddly intriguing scent out of his mind.

Once clean, and calm enough to walk out from his room and head towards class. He felt more than anything, a deep sense of embarrassment at the ordeal from the last 24 hours.

He wasn't sure just what Uraraka had seen, he didn't know why she didn't bother waking him up to alert him to her presence. And on top of it all, he didn't have a fucking clue as to why she'd chosen to stay at his side while he was out of commission.

The only thing he did very briefly remember, was waking up, scorching, and thinking his mom had been there, stroking his cheek and cooling his forehead.

But now that he realized that had been that fucking airhead, he wanted nothing more than to torch all of U.A.'s campus into ashes.

Bakugou trotted loudly through the campus, glaring at anyone feeling brave enough to make eye contact with him, until he caught sight of the enigma herself, Ochako Uraraka.

"Uraraka-san!" the blonde looked up to see Deku running awkwardly towards her, an idiotic smile covering his flushed cheeks.

 _Damn nerd._ He thought impulsively.

He then turned his attention back to Uraraka who seemed to be lost in a world of her own. But apart from her everyday nonsense and bubbly antics, it didn't take a rocket scientist to see what was going on here.

She was using her hands a lot, constantly fidgeting. There was a rosy tint to her rather pale complexion, and to top it all off she couldn't seem to tear those big brown eyes pf hers away from the idiot's gaze.

They liked each other and it was easy to tell.

Hell, they were acting like fourth graders about to hold hands for the first time, with all their blushing and giggling.

He made an audible 'tch' sound as he eye-balled the two lovebirds, his roaming gaze mainly falling over the gravity-wielding nuisance.

She definitely wasn't hard on the eyes, boasting a well-rounded backside, curvaceous thighs, and her other features Bakugou also deemed 'attractive'.

One hundred percent out of Deku's league that was for damn sure.

He looked away and continued to advance past them. Taking large strides, Bakugou let out a small insidious chuckle.

A plan that was probably not the most 'heroic' formulating at the forefront of his mind.

What would that Quirkless bastard do, if he stole Uraraka for himself?


	2. The Agreement

**Disclaimer** **: I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.**

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 **Caged**

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Chapter 2: The Agreement

Katsuki Bakugou was a being so focused on becoming the next number one hero, he'd always just assumed that all other important life achievements would fall into place for him somewhere along the way.

Or maybe they never would, but right now, in his mind, none of it mattered as long as he could surpass All Might eventually.

If he could do that…no when he did that, he would finally show that damned Deku who was going to become the greatest hero.

He would win.

So, in a less pressing matter…

He was pretty damn certain that if it came down to a choice between him and the Quirkless grinning idiot, any girl would easily prefer him over the latter.

This is why, when it came to devising a strategy to get Ochako Uraraka to date him, he was at a complete loss, which irritated him to no fucking end.

The odds were already stacked against him because the woman, for whatever ungodly reason, already had the hots for Deku.

Why she didn't outright vomit at the thought of him doing stuff to her, he had no fucking clue. Maybe she had a screw loose or had brain damage from the lack of gravity keeping her on Earth, but none of that really mattered because his end goal was not to really date her, it was just to show Deku that he was no better than himself, even when it came to women.

Whatever the case, he knew she had hardly ever interacted with him, the last time to date, being when he was acting like a pathetic wuss, calling out for his mom.

He also knew, that the most prevalent memory of him she probably held, was when he had fought her in the sports festival.

If he recalled that excursion correctly, he'd repeatedly yelled for her to die after firing off max capacity explosions at point blank range to blast her shifty little ass to pieces.

Therefore, naturally, he turned to the only person he could think to ask for some help in finding a way to get Uraraka to agree to being his girlfriend, Kirishima.

Unfortunately, his sole confidant was currently surrounded by, in his own endearing term of reference, the squad of idiots.

The so called 'idiot squad' was composed of Alien Bitch, Tape-face, and Pikachu.

"Oi, Kirishima." He began lowly, shifting himself onto the couch of the common area uncomfortably aware of the stares he was receiving.

Beads of nervous sweat formed on his hands without his control, the small droplets spreading over his calloused flesh as he shoved his fists hastily into his pockets.

"Bakugou? What's up?" the red-head replied swiftly, a way too happy grin spreading over his face.

Bakugou scowled at the wide-eyed crew eavesdropping on he and Kirishima's conversation and tensed as he tried to spit out the question.

"What kind of shit do you do for a girl to make her date you?" He all but yelled into the red-head's ear. Katsuki didn't feel there was any other way to word the loaded question. But he instantly regretted asking it altogether once the bursts of laughter erupted from the three around him.

Kaminari was emitting tiny electric shocks as he cackled, Tape-face was smiling off to the side, and Alien Bitch was wiping away stray tears as she beat her fists on the cushions of her seat.

"Forget it you fucks." He said, his cheeks sporting a light blush of red. He hid his gaze behind the shroud of his blonde hair, flustered he prepared to leave the scene altogether.

Kirishima's hand shot to his shoulder, effectively locking him in place as he endured the moronic laughter echoing in his ears.

He glanced out of his peripheral and noted the faint, all-knowing smile of Kirishima's expression.

"S-since when do you even like girls?" Kaminari shot, regaining his composure.

"Yeah we were convinced you were gay anyway! You always fawn over Deku!" Mina added, her words warped with amused giggles.

"I too have heard rumors that you might not prefer women." Forehead vein bulging at the last comment, hands itching to set off his quirk, Bakugou spun around angrily to obliterate whomever had just spoken their last words.

His shoulders raised when he saw red and white hair, straight as a pin.

"What the fuck did you just say, Half N' Half?!" he spat at his classmate, his fists lighting up with miniature bursts of light and fire.

Todoroki simply waltzed toward the group and sat right next to Kirishima who was still trying to maintain his reserved composure to spare Bakugou the humiliation.

"Trust me, you're helpless here without me." Todoroki deadpanned, his red and white hair still damp from his apparent shower.

Kaminari's mouth gaped open as he observed the boy steaming his dampened locks with his hot sided quirk capabilities. A twinkle in the lightning-user's eyes as he sat in awe.

"Why would I need you?" Bakugou growled, eyes narrowing suspiciously, thinking over whether the pretty boy actually knew anything about romantic advances that would be useful.

"Having been raised as a child constantly being put on display for the number two hero in the world, you have to learn how to handle girls and women of all types and ages." He explained calmly, his demeanor only encouraging Bakugou's growing resentment towards his company.

Did he think his lineage made any goddamn difference on the battlefield?

"Tch." He grumbled, grinding his teeth together and rubbing the sweat of his nitroglycerin infused palms on his pants leg.

"First things first, you don't 'make' girls date you, Bakugou. Typically, girls enjoy compliments, they appreciate the simple observations of changes in their appearance, or nail color I think. That part shouldn't be difficult for you since you tend to be fairly perceptive." Todoroki added absentmindedly.

"Ah you're right about that Todoroki! Bakugou always notices when Kirishima change shis hairstyle!" Mina jumped into the discussion gleefully, Bakugou's temper flaring.

"OF COURSE I WOULD NOTICE. IF YOUR HAIR CHANGED FROM BLACK TO RED DON'T YOU THINK THAT'S PRETTY DAMN NOTEWORTHY YA DAMN ALIEN FREAK!?" The explosive boy bellowed, Todoroki sighing exasperated at the blonde's antics.

Mina cowered aware from Bakugou shrugging her shoulders and letting out a nervous laugh.

Kirishima's scarred eyebrow twitched in annoyance, and he could see the desperation for understanding lingering in Bakugou's piercing orbs as he continued to argue with Mina and Todoroki aimlessly.

Deciding to take matters into his own hands, which he assumed Bakugou had approached the entourage in the first place for in his own indirect way, Kirishima stood.

"Oi, Oi why don't you all just settle down? Stop giving Bakugou such a hard time, it's not like any of us really know the first thing about relationships anyway." The temperamental aura of the group seemed to pacify with Kirishima's peaceable actions, and he slapped a hand onto Bakugou's shoulder with more force than necessary.

"Bakugou! Why don't you come with me? I got some new boxing gear I wanna show you!" Kirishima chided as he dragged the blonde behind him, exiting the scene.

"Tch, whatever Shitty Hair."

* * *

Most of Ochako Uraraka's morning activities were fairly consistent. A hot cup of coffee, staring at the colors of the sunrise, and chatting with Izuku and Tenya over breakfast cooked by one of their classmates.

However, Bakugou never really fit into her typical day at all. She rarely saw the boy outside of classes or when she happened to be teamed up with him in hero exercises.

In fact, if she could think back, she hadn't interacted with him much at all since their partnership on the paper for class.

So, she found it increasingly strange when he suddenly offered to walk her to class after the 1-A breakfast routine. She also found it odd that he was asking her random facts about herself, some of which included: how her morning was, if she did something different with her hair, even what she was doing later, what color nail polish did she prefer.

 _He wants something_. She thought to herself, brown eyes narrowing in contemplation.

"Your eyes are…fucking brown." She chortled at his last observation. She'd always found the vulgar manner Bakugou spoke in somewhat funny. It kind of reminded her of the garble she'd overheard as a girl amongst the construction workers in her parents' company.

"Yeah yours are kind of reddish and scary." she replied in turn, twirling a strand of hair around her index finger and watching Bakugou's expression contort into a subdued flare of annoyance.

It was unlike the blonde to hold back his blunt commentary on his emotions.

She scanned the surrounding area to see if Kirishima or any other of Bakugou's typical associates were making him do this as some sort of prank. There had to be a valid reason for him to go out of his way to speak to her.

There was just no way the king of all explosions was chit-chatting with her for sheer pleasure. She was looking for an explanation behind the forced smile he was wearing that made him look even more terrifying than normal.

When no explanation revealed itself for his impromptu interaction with her, she became wary.

What exactly was Bakugou trying to get at here? She didn't think he thought highly enough of her to warrant some kind of camaraderie.

The weird behavior Katsuki was exuding, really started getting to her during lunchtime. She could practically hear Bakugou breathing down her neck.

She whipped around, ready to confront him head-on about his antics when she realized that he wasn't, for once in the day, boring holes into her backside.

Scanning over the cafeteria, she found the boy and immediately noticed the deep lines in his forehead, and the tight-pressed frown his lips had molded into.

The severe contempt present in the depths of his amber gaze, sent a chill down her spine. She was reminded how intense Bakugou's presence could be.

She followed his sharp glare to its source of irritation.

He was looking at Izuku.

Well, not so much looking as glaring vehemently. The observation made something click in the back of her mind, a metaphoric light bulb went off, gears began turning, or some other cliché saying.

Did these bizarre occurrences with Bakugou somehow stem from his rivalry with Deku?

Sure, she was close to Deku…maybe not as close as she wanted to be, but still close. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch what with Bakugou's clear display of feeling threatened by Deku, that he might try and find a way outside of sheer power to feel superior to the freckled boy.

But would Bakugou really do something so underhanded?

It didn't seem like him, to do something so…dishonest. That wasn't in his brutish nature.

Her positive aura diminished slightly as she watched over the blonde from her table, a pit of sadness formed in her gut as she regarded her classmate with concern.

Couldn't Bakugou see there was no one here he needed to prove himself too?

* * *

Bakugou thought over his conversation with Kirishima as he paced outside the dorm's.

He could see the encouraging expression of his _friend_ in his mind's eye as Kirishima's advice rang in his ears.

' _Bakugou! Just be yourself, if you can't be yourself with someone, then what's the point of loving anyway?'_

He sighed as he scratched underneath his chin, continuing his consistent steps forwards and backwards across the shards of green.

He was beginning to think this whole scheme he had planned wasn't worth the effort he'd have to exude. Lying wasn't really his thing in the first place, he was 'too damn honest' according to his old hag anyway.

If he had an opinion, he would just fucking spill it, he didn't really care if someone didn't like it.

So, lying to Uraraka to get her to be with him in order to freak out the nerd, just wasn't really…his style.

' _Girls are really complicated sometimes Bakugou, but it doesn't mean they're not worth the effort. If there's someone whose caught your eye they must be really something huh?'_

Bakugou heard the words of the red-head once again and paused.

Sure Uraraka was…attractive. She had some appeal, but he hadn't really ever considered her as anything other than leverage in this scenario.

She was strong, he would admit that much. Hell, he even respected that.

He'd never really considered dating anyone before, but he didn't 'like' her necessarily. She just wasn't the worst of people to have around, maybe it was just that she wasn't as goddamn insufferable as the rest of his classmates seemed to be.

He shook his head, blonde hair rustling as his mind stilled.

Did he really even want a girlfriend?

"U-Um Bakugou-kun." Katsuki froze and looked back over his shoulder to the familiar source of the voice calling out to him.

It had him taken aback, the gravity-wielder finding him before he had the chance to even find her first.

"What do you want cheeks?" he asked suspiciously, sarcasm tinging his gravely tone.

Uraraka's brown eyes held a light of concern within their chocolate depths, it unnerved him to have her staring at him that way. Her face was always had an air-headed expression on it, seeing her so intent…it was fucking weird.

He could take care of himself, so why the hell did she look so worried?

He looked on as she took a deep breath in, her supple chest rising and falling as she exhaled.

"Bakugou-kun…what are your intentions with me?" Her honesty wasn't what he had expected. The question held not a hint of uncertainty within it.

She was staring directly into his scarlet orbs, undaunted by the flickering challenge she saw lying within there. She had no intention of backing down.

Her courage however, left no time for him to come up with a suitable explanation for the complicated answer he had in mind. He decided instead to dodge it altogether.

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about…" he muttered lowly, a pang of shame coursing through his veins.

Why the fuck was he telling so many lies? He didn't give a shit what she thought…right?

Nervous, he started running both of his hands through his unruly hair, leaving the spikes more ruffled than before.

"I don't believe you." She shot back firmly, her small padded hands balled into tight fists, her brows knitted into discontentment as she continued to bore into him.

"Why in the fuck are you coming out here to ask me this kind of stuff huh? You trying to pick a fight with me Uraraka?" his coldness was just a reflex to the awkward tension of the confrontation.

Bakugou felt his control slipping whenever she gave him that look, just like she had when they'd fought in the sports festival.

She was steady, unmoving, like a boulder in his path. Someone not to take lightly.

"I'm not trying to make you angry Bakugou it's just…I've noticed you've been acting strange today…" The sudden softness to her voice caught him off guard. It was lighter than air, as if she was using her quirk to manipulate the weight of her very words in his ear. He hated how comforting it felt.

"The hell you mean strange?" he retorted. Tension seeping back into his form.

Uraraka crossed her arms.

"You've been talking to me a lot more than usual, and staring at me too. I'm not saying you can't come and talk to me! I just think it's a little odd so suddenly."

"What I can't speak to you without a reason?" a dust of light pink spread across the normally flushed expanse of Uraraka's cheeks as Bakugou's comment sank in.

"Y-You know what I mean Bakugou!" she stammered.

"Tsk." He turned away from her, gazing out at the campus grounds.

"Look Uraraka. I had this dumbass idea that I'd convince you to date me so I could get under that damn Deku's skin. But clearly I'm not stupid enough to think it would work with someone as goddamn nosy as you." He refused to meet her unflinching eyes. He didn't want to see the disappointment he was sure lurked within the hazel expanse.

"I thought so…" Bakugou's brow raised and he looked over to her out of his peripheral.

"I was pretty sure that you had a reason, and not a romantic one." The laugh that left her throat had a sad ring in it.

"I mean who would date me? I'm just some weak girl trying to become a hero!" her degrading comment made Bakugou angry for reasons outside his realm of understanding.

He swiveled towards the brunette, frown in place.

"You're not weak Uraraka." He hated the surprise that lit up her face as her jaw hung open.

He narrowed his eyes and turned to stalk away when a hand caught the back of his shirt sleeve.

"Wait! I um…I do have one favor to ask." She scrambled frantically, Katsuki crane dhis neck to see her pensive façade.

"What?" he asked.

She hid her eye from his view, her choppy bangs shrouding them from the daylight.

"I want you to train me, so that I can do better at close combat without totally relying on my quirk." Katsuki's interest peaked in her request, his mouth tugging into a smirk, canines glinting in the sun as he stared down at her.

"Why would you want me to train you, and not that damn nerd?" he threw back at her, carefully observing.

"Because I know you won't take it easy on me. How will I ever become stronger if I can only win by using my quirk?" Bakugou searched for any hesitation in her eyes, when he found none he cracked his knuckles and spun his shoulder around to loosen it.

 _Crack! Crkk! Crackk!_

Ochako watched as a bloodthirsty grin spread over Bakugou's features, his knuckles popping to signal his approval of her favor.

A beam of excitement shot through her, she felt the need to move.

"I hope you know what the hell you just asked for. I don't pull punches just cause you're a girl." He said in battle-crazed growl.

"Training starts now Uraraka!" She dodged the hefty right swing Bakugou threw towards her, raring to go.

The heat of the first attack singed the hairs on her forearm. She quickly mimicked his motions, flashing a devilish smile of her own.

She was going to give this practice her all, and maybe she'd even save Bakugou from himself in the process.

He needed to know that no one thought he was weak either.

Just like he'd bluntly put it earlier when she was doubting her abilities, Uraraka wanted to show the explosive boy that he was amazing.

* * *

 **A/N:** I hope you enjoyed today's update! I love the Bakusquad's interactions in the manga and anime but sometimes I'm not sure I really portray the humor that Horikoshi does with their little spats. I hope this chapter helps you understand kind of where this story is headed, I plan on this fic being a slow-burn, it'll be awhile before something really juicy happens!


	3. The Misadventures of Kirishima and Iida

**A/N:** Hello hello! Just here with a new weekly update! I loved/enjoyed your thoughts in the reviews from last chapter! You guys are the best! Also, just wanted to issue a quick **WARNING** to those who have either not caught up in the manga of MHA, or are only watching the Anime. This story up to a certain point will follow the manga and then take its own twist. So, **THERE WILL BE SPOILERS** to anybody not caught up in the manga. Other than that enjoy!

* * *

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.

* * *

 **Caged**

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Chapter 3: The Misadventures of Kirishima and Iida

Kirishima, Eijirou was not the kind of man to be easily shaken. He was someone who could harden his body against anything and everything; he was the horse that would not crumple!

But…

The sudden change in Bakugou, was enough to rattle even his sturdy composure.

The spiky-haired teen was walking around in dead silence. Not the angry kind of silence, just the humbly content type.

Kirishima has tried to pry on the shift in demeanor, but was only met with Bakugou's usual gruff exterior. He wished he could find a way to understand the blonde better.

He found himself wondering what could have caused this streak of decent behavior in the unruly boy.

From what he could remember, Bakugou had a very limited number of things that pleased him, and the things that displeased him were too many too count.

He liked spicy food…in fact food so spicy that it was scary.

He also like mountain climbing but there were no mountains anywhere near U.A.

He wondered if maybe All Might had said something to him, he'd seen the small tidbits of All Might paraphernalia scattered in Bakugou's cave-like hole he referred to as a dorm room.

But he quickly dismissed the notion that any advice given to Bakugou by his admired teacher wouldn't be shot down with a stern 'don't tell me what to do!' and a glare as he stalked away.

Sighing, Kirishima pressed his fingers to his temples and rubbed harshly. After racking through his brain for a significant amount of time, his brown eyes shot wide open in realization.

It had to be a girl!

Surely that was all it could be! But who the hell would date Bakugou?

His mind flitted to the brief conversation that he and Bakugou had tried to have before others had butted in the other day. He had been asking about something to do with romance.

Anybody who could be deemed more worthy of Bakugou's time and effort, than Bakugou himself, was a feat more incredible than anything he could imagine.

What kind of woman was this? And how scary was she that she had whipped Bakugou into submission?

He ran over the faces of the girls in class 1A.

There was Mina, Tsuyu, Jirou, Hagakure, Yaoyoruzu, and one more…Uraraka! But there was no way it could be Uraraka. It was kind of common knowledge that she was under Midoriya's purview. It was just the unspoken rule, not to mess with another man's interest.

A man's girl is a man's girl, and that was that in Kirishima's mind.

But even if Bakugou did break that rule, which is something he'd probably do, would it really be her?

After much deliberation the red-head came to the conclusion that the only way to figure out which girl it was would mean surveillance of his friend for at least an entire day...possibly more.

He had to see this chick for himself.

Thus, his quest began. He waited in the courtyard until he found his target.

"Yo! Bakugou!" he called, jogging to catch up with his blonde-haired comrade. The latter was indifferent to his cheeriness as usual.

"Where ya going?" Kirishima asked cheerfully, trying not be suspicious even though sweat beaded his bandanaed forehead.

"Where the hell do you think? We have class dumbass." He muttered sullenly. So far, no signs of any girlfriend, Kirishima thought sullenly.

A small, audible _bzzz_! came from Bakugou's pocket.

Kirishima watched from the corner of his eye as he pulled it out, opened the message, and then his thumbs went to work texting back a response.

He watched intrigued as his pyromaniac companion began to smile, the expression just didn't seem to suite him. In fact, he looked kind of scary.

"Hehe..." A chuckle! There was even a chuckle coming from this guy's mouth!

"W-Who are you texting, man?" Kirishima inquired, not able to keep a stutter from betraying his shock, his mouth hanging agape.

"Nobody." He responded flatly, clicking the light of his phone off and shoving the device back into his pocket. Kirishima raised an eyebrow, regaining his sense of espionage.

Did Bakugou just lie on purpose or did he just try and push him away like normal?

With all the thinking Kirishima had been doing he lost track of time and only regained his whereabouts when he noticed Uraraka as they entered the classroom.

The gravity girl waved her hand in their direction but she wasn't looking at him. Low and behold, Katsuki Bakugou was waving his hand back. There had to be something more to this situation.

Kirishima noticed just in general, ever since Midoriya began shining, Bakugou's animosity had died down. He was curious if this was because of a growth in maturity or somebody like a girlfriend was influencing him. Or it was entirely possible that Bakugou had pulled away from everyone because he found Midoriya threatening. Only Kirishima seemed to be able to notice the difference between Bakugou, the asshole, and Bakugou, the misunderstood teenager.

After class Kirishima continued to follow Bakugou. He kept a respectable distance, not wanting to be caught by the perceptive teen, and noted that in all honesty Bakugou's activities seemed pretty damn normal.

He ate like everyone else, albeit, alone. He trained, and he even watched television, mostly violent ones but still. It wasn't until an hour before midnight that the investigation became interesting.

Kirishima watched as his friend exited his house, double checking each direction to make sure no one was watching, even though, he missed him. Then he cautiously pulled the front door to, and continued walking.

About halfway through their walk, Kirishima noticed that they were heading towards U.A.

What business is so secret that Bakugou has to do it after hours? He thought.

His friend slipped into the front gate of the high school, I.D. card present. Kirishima waited two or three minutes and did the same so he wouldn't be caught by Bakugou's ungodly perceptive prowess.

Once inside he barely made out the burly form of Bakugou's spiky-haired figure disappearing into the woods on campus. Worried he pushed onward and followed his friend.

As he made his way deeper into the forest, he noticed a kind of pathway was laid before him. He'd never noticed it beforehand, it wasn't like he'd ever really had the urge to go into the greenery anyway.

Had Bakugou been coming here so often that he had made a path without realizing it?

He began to hear the telltale sounds of fists meeting fists, and didn't start sprinting until he heard the all too familiar sound of small-scale explosions erupting from the center of the forest.

Were villians back?

When he was close enough to the sound, he saw what was occurring and stumbled backwards out of awe, stifling an amused giggle.

Bakugou was fighting Uraraka! But not in a deathly kind of way, or the 'I'll murder you for disgracing me' way, in a teaching kind of way.

He looked on as the brunette girl met every one of Bakugou's blows with her own, she was much tougher than anyone really gave her credit for.

"What the hell…" he muttered quietly, prepared to observe every bit of what was happening.

Why would Bakugou agree to something like this? He wasn't the type to do things without a reason.

"Too slow Uraraka!" Bakugou scolded loudly, throwing a right fist into the girl's curved side, the collision sending off an array of brightly colored embers around her.

Kirishima felt his face flush as he witnessed the glimmer of the sparks illuminate the fierce determination set in Ochako's delicately carved features. Her brown hair flying around her and her brows drawn with sweat.

Uraraka's body shook but she somehow managed to stand her ground and get back up.

Kirishima couldn't tear his wide-blown eyes away from the scene as she pressed her fingertips together and used her quirk on herself, a pink light glowing around her palm as it activated.

She was coming at Bakugou once again, and she jumped into the air, ascending to a higher point than possible without a quirk like hers. But there was something wrong. Her balance was unstable. When she tried to bring her heel down in a swift gravity reinforced kick back towards earth, her face contorted into pale nauseated expression.

Seriously, he wondered if her original intent was to blow chunks in Bakugou's face and distract him in order to get a hit in.

She managed to land the kick but not where she intended. Kirishima knew that this mistake would cost her the victory of the match.

"Uwaaaaa!" she screamed as she was blasted away by the shock waves created by white-hot palm of her blonde peer.

When the smoke finally cleared Kirishima watched Bakugou walk toward the center, tall and straight.

Uraraka was pulling herself up, looking a little worse for the wear and before she could stand all the way, Bakugou caught hold of her wrists and pulled her against his chest to prevent her from falling down again.

She was panting heavily, and his action brought a flush to Kirishima's cheeks that matched the color of his hair. He turned away to respect their private moment.

"Midoriya's not gonna like this…" Kirishima whispered loudly, and then covered his mouth with both hands, mentally scolding himself for forgetting where he was and what he was doing.

"That's enough for today you idiot, do you want to get killed?" Bakugou said lowly as Uraraka laughed jubilantly against his hard chest, her breathing evening out as he held her up.

"I have to get stronger Bakugou…" Uraraka defended herself, her sweet voice almost too low for Kirishima to pick up. He then looked back just as her grip on Bakugou's tank top tightened.

"What the hell was that move anyway? You wouldn't be able to stand right now if I left you on your own." Bakugou persisted, but his nagging tone was not vicious like Kirishima expected. His eyes, at least from Kirishima's position were hidden from her sight by his sharp blonde tresses.

This was the side of Bakugou that was restrained, and he wondered whether or not Ochako realized, the volume that the last explosion he let off, in comparison to the ones he normally used against others, was incredibly withdrawn.

He may not have seemed like a good guy at times from his violent actions, but his bro had a heart of gold that few people were able to witness. And seeing Bakugou treat a girl nicely nearly brought the red-head to tears.

"You go man!" he cheered quietly, pounding his fist on the ground in a dull way of getting the surge of excitement he held for his friend out of his system. In secret, Kirishima was quite the romantic when it came to his personal life.

"I know, but I wanted to see what would happen if I tried to do something like that against someone with abilities like you." Ochako whined casually, pushing away from Bakugou and fumbling for a hold on the ground.

Bakugou stood by silently and offered a hand to Uraraka, which she took willingly and managed to stand wobbly on her boot-clad feet. When they began coming towards Kirishima's direction he realized the entire scene would become incredibly awkward if he didn't hightail it out of there. Scraping to get out of the forest he managed to trip himself but quickly recovered and made his break.

However, once he was out of the shrubbery he wasn't completely in the clear. If they caught him they'd be suspicious. He was not about to be the end to…whatever chivalrous beginning Bakugou had been keeping from him.

"Shit…" he swiped his student card across the scanner to the gate and slowly the damn thing opened wide enough for him to bust out. As he ran he began to mull over his feelings about what he'd witnessed.

He wondered if Bakugou actually had feelings for Uraraka, and vice versa. If he did that really sucked. If she did that was really unexpected.

It was clear to anyone who looked just below the surface that Uraraka was obviously head over heels for Midoriya. Whether she did or didn't have feelings, and whether Bakugou did or didn't realize Uraraka's feelings for Midoriya, this strange relationship between them was certainly something interesting. He would have to keep it to himself…maybe he could tell Mina…

Kirishima sighed in relief, and began slowing down when he was sure he was far enough away from the two of them to not be conspicuous. He was glad that his friend wasn't going through some sort of crisis, and as for the more pleasant mood swings, he had Uraraka to thank for that.

As Kirishima nearly made it to the stairway towards his dorm room, an unforeseen hand reached out from behind a corner and pulled him aside abruptly.

"What the fu-" the coarse skin of a fist was clamped around his lips before he could finish his sentence.

"Keep your voice down Kirishima, Eijirou." He recognized the voice of the person who was apprehending him from his escape as Tenya Iida and immediately felt relief, and then anger.

When Iida released him he sank a hardened fist into the class president's chest.

"Well I guess I deserved that for getting your attention in such an underhanded manner." The class president said stoically as he coughed from the force of the blow.

"What the hell are you doing pulling people into dark hallways out of the blue man?!" Kirishima demanded, running a hand through his hair to fix the ruffled styling.

"ME? What are YOU doing sauntering around the grounds of school so late at night? Also to add to your crimes why don't you explain why it is that you have been following around Bakugou all day long? Did you think I would not take notice of your villain-like sneaking? Well you are wrong!" Iida shouted, hand jabbing at him, throwing privacy out the window as some classmates peered around the hallway corner to see what the commotion was about.

Kirishima sighed and took control of his temper, biting his bottom lip and look at Iida head on.

"Listen Iida, I was just making sure he was alright. He's been acting a little weird lately." Kirishima confessed, telling the truth as Iida's face morphed into a less accusatory expression.

"Ah, I see, I have mistaken your intentions, forgive me." Kirishima laughed nervously, as his peer bowed before him in an apologetic manner. This guy was seriously intense!

"It's okay man really!" he reassured and then realized he'd never gotten the chance to ask Iida how he was doing. Since the sports festival, things at school had been so fast pace that the courtesy had slipped his mind. His brother, had nearly died in a confrontation with a villain.

"Iida." Kirishima began, changing his tone.

"Yes?" the glasses-wearer replied.

"Well, like, how are you? Like seriously." Kirishima asked, peering sympathetically into his classmate's blue orbs that were racing with several emotions.

"I'm just fine." He lied.

Kirishima narrowed his eyes, the vengeful implications of Iida's tone alarmed him. It was clear that there was anger brewing inside the class president. But was there a way to maybe dull the fire?

Kirishima's lips broke out into a smile, as he began thinking up a way to distract the president from his troubles.

"You're close to Uraraka right?" Kirishima questioned, playing on his innocence.

"We are very good friends indeed, why do you ask?" Iida replied, his interest piqued.

As Kirishima told Iida about the mysterious events that had played out in front of him in the U.A. forest, Iida forgot all about his revenge.

"Uraraka-san has never mentioned Bakugou once in our discussions. However, I assume that could mean that she was hiding some precarious feelings." Iida deduced, his thumb and index finger molding around his chin.

"Seriously!? Bakugou has never said much about her either, it's crazy!" Kirishima noted, the inquisitive look on Iida's face only making him itch to find out more.

"You said they were sparring though?" Iida asked.

"Yes." Kirishima answered.

"I do recall Uraraka briefly mentioning at the Sport's Festival that she wanted to catch the eye of some agencies that supported hand-to-hand combat heroes. Perhaps, that may be a plausible cause of this interaction." Iida offered. But the reality of that thought left an unsatisfied feeling in Kirishima's being.

"You know what? Whose better to ask than the man himself?" the red-head offered, leaving the human engine to mull over to implications of Kirishima's words.

In times like the present when Eijirou Kirishima became nervous, he had the terrible habit of grinding his unusually sharp teeth against each other.

This behavior often resulted in him injuring himself, like a nick in the inside of his lip, or an ulcer on his tongue. Yet, the habit also kept him from muttering like a freak the way Midoriya did on the daily.

"Are you ready?" Iida asked him.

"Hell yeah." Kirishima cheered quietly as the twisted the knob to the boys lounge area.

The plot had been determined the previous night, when Iida had unexpectedly appeared in front of Kirishima. They had planned to delicately ask Bakugou about Uraraka, maybe even casually mention being interested - even though they were not - in her, and seeing his reaction.

However, within seconds of walking in the expanse of the room and making eye contact with Katsuki Bakugou, Iida threw all whims of caution out the window.

"What business do you have with Ochako Uraraka, Katsuki Bakugou?!" Kirishima let his forehead smack the palm of his hand audibly, waiting for some declaration of violence to ensue.

"What the hell are you talking about four-eyes?" Bakugou spat venomously, giving Kirishima a questioning glare.

Kirishima made sure to distance himself from Iida, who he now was certain was about to go into a lecture about etiquette.

"I am asking because should your intentions be impure, I will put an end to it." Kirishima looked on nervously, a blonde eyebrow shot up in amusement as its owner cocked his head to the side with a smirk.

"Oh yeah? And just what the fuck can _you_ do to _me_?" Bakugou asked, his tone low and half-cocked smirk present. Iida became clearly agitated by this and Kirishima could see the clench in Iida's jaw.

"You would dare harm a woman? What kind of man do you aspire to be? Have you any idea the dishonor in crushing a person weaker than you are?" Kirishima didn't need to see the bristles flare up on Bakugou's neck to predict what was going to happen.

"Shut the hell up! You don't know what hell you're talking about you damn machine! I ain't a damn animal! Why the fuck would I want to hurt Uraraka huh?" he yelled, the annoyance in his voice apparent, veins on his forehead protruding.

Bakugou stood and sauntered over towards Iida, who by his stance, was not backing down from the opposition, and yanked the collar of the taller blue-eyed boy upwards.

"I said it once, and I'll say it again since you can't seem to remember shit." After a long and scorching glare at the president Bakugou released his classmate and began his path towards the upper floors.

"Uraraka isn't a damn piece of glass, if you're going to make a big goddamn fuss over what we do in our own time take it up with roundface." And with that small, powerful declaration the hot-head vanished up the stairs, leaving Kirishima, Iida, and another eavesdropper alone in the common space.

The silence that followed Bakugou's departure was perfect for contemplating the choice of words the blonde had used. Kirishima came to the conclusion that Bakugou felt _something_ for Uraraka, now, whether that was respect or something else he wouldn't know until there was more definitive proof.

"Did you find the answer you were hoping for?" Iida inquired, pulling Kirishima out of his own thoughts.

"Yeah man, thanks." He said, patting Iida on the shoulder.

His classmate nodded in reciprocation and then headed out offering a quick farewell. Once Iida was out of earshot Kirishima turned towards the kitchen entrance.

"Midoriya, I know you're there." Kirishima called out, eyeing the greenish curl that stuck out from behind the wall at the corner.

The eavesdropper revealed himself and looked rather introspective, when he began mumbling nonsense Kirishima laughed and decided he'd think about the entire onslaught some other time. Seriously, he had bigger worries than some squabble between two classmates.

He just wanted everything to work out for the best.

* * *

An unprecedented routine came to fruition in the weeks following Bakugou and Uraraka's bizarre agreement. The former would wake up, blast one of his many alarm clocks to ashes, and then hop inside the warm, bone-deep heat of the communal shower water.

After letting his taught muscles relax, he would let the water die down gradually and when he stepped foot outside the structure he would inspect himself.

He looked for anything that he had not seen the previous night. A scratch, a bruise, a nick, anything. And on this particular day he noticed a long, shallow slit that crossed his shoulder blade and ended at the middle of his back.

 _She's getting better._ He thought to himself, an involuntary grin coming to his lips.

He chuckled, feeling a small amount of excitement at the discovery.

Uraraka was getting to be hard to handle. If he didn't want to end up with something that would land him in recovery girl's office, he'd better let loose a little more freely with her. That was what was so interesting about the gravity-wielding woman.

She had a ferocious spirit.

And he liked that about her.

The strategies she came up with impressed him, and the buds of ideas for special attacks she tried each day.

She never gave up in a fight, not until she couldn't stand, and even then sometimes she tried to keep going.

There was something about the way her innocent, harmless charisma suddenly shifted into a bloodthirsty warrior on the battlefield that kept him wanting to keep his eyes locked onto her.

Her faintly rose-colored cheeks, speckled with dirt. The way her soft brown eyes had a rough edge to their roundness as the sparks from his quirk reflected in them.

She was _different_ , unlike any woman he'd ever met.

 _Bzzz_!

Bakugou pulled his cellphone off the counter and pressed the button at its base. He had a new message from Uraraka.

She wanted to meet before class started. Turning the device off he pulled the towel around his waist over his head and began soaking the moisture out of it.

Once he was fully clothed, showered, and fed he hustled to get to her before it was too late.

"Yo." He said casually as he made his way to her. She turned to meet him, the ever-present smile she always seemed to have in place apparent.

"Hey Bakugoua!" she chirped, her pleasantness irking him a bit.

"What do you want?" he asked, trying to get to the point of the meeting.

He felt his palms sweat a little more than usual. He brushed it off as being hot, but it was obvious he wasn't used to talking to her as much out in public, where their peers could see them interacting. For some reason Katsuki knew he felt like he was being somebody with her that no one else saw.

It kind of felt like the way he treated Kirishima, because in his mind, Uraraka and him stood on at least equal footing compared to other pissants of their class.

"Well you know the upperclassmen have been saying that we'll be on schedule to start our internships soon, and I just um…" she was looking down, her full lips were held together forcefully, it looked as though they might burst apart.

"I'm going to get strong enough to beat you when I come back!" her outburst seemed to have embarrassed her. She blushed and then met his crimson gaze with the same determination she held when they trained.

Bakugou began cackling at the girl standing before him, to the point of his eyes watering.

"If you think some pansy-ass little hero can train you enough to beat me then you're crazy angelface." He finished, his smirk suited in its typical place.

She curled her lips upwards into a smile, her eyebrows furrowed and her expression dark.

"Watch me try." Bakugou returned her challenge with a grin of his own, already anticipating the next time their fists would collide.

"Do your fucking worst."

* * *

 **A/N:** Happy birthday Kacchan! I had to update this today of all days! I would love to know what your thoughts were on this lil bit of the story and your predictions on where our two love-birds will be headed next chapter! Til next time :)


	4. What's It To Ya

**Disclaimer:** I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 4: What's It To Ya

In the week following Class 1A's internship opportunities, Ochako Uraraka found that she barely had time to breath.

She was already worn out, yet also invigorated by her training with Gunhead, the suppressing fire hero. The only part of her training she regretted was the constant under-handed comments Gunhead made about her and a certain classmate in order to tease her.

Yet, even though everyone was only processing at half power, all of them were running around like crazy trying to perfect their special moves, and study for the final exam that was coming closer and closer. She even found that when she tried to sleep after a grueling day of studying and throwing up from using her quirk so much that she would lie awake for hours because the fear of failing ebbed at her conscious. Failing was simply, not an option for her.

Her and Izuku hadn't really reconnected either. Sure, they had spoken over the phone once or twice during the internship, but now he was so focused on his new style of fighting that she couldn't even say hello. It was infuriating!

As for Bakugou, he too was consumed with getting stronger. The ferocity he put behind his explosions in the training grounds told her that without her having to ask. She didn't feel that it was the right time to train with him again, but she was desperate to show him just how much better she'd gotten at close combat. She wasn't self-assured enough to proclaim that she would earn a victory over the hot-head but she was certain she would get in a few punches. She wondered what kind of world of hurt his ego would be in if a girl managed to beat him. His reactions to these kinds of things always put a smile on her face. Behind all his angry words, was…well something.

Bakugou also had an air about him that seemed almost… _unstable_.

She couldn't pinpoint the problem, she didn't think she would be able to ask him directly, but it worried her.

In a complete opposite situation, Izuku seemed to be more on fire than ever. He was like a glass of water that was brimming to the point of spilling over the sides with the confidence he'd gained. The gleam in his emerald gaze left her feeling like she was watching the universe unravel inside them. She was star struck by his actions, and moved with the way he carried everyone and anyone on his back. Her hope rode on him too, after all.

He and Bakugou had become so different ever since Stain had been captured. Like two sides of the same coin. Defender and Protector.

Uraraka couldn't help but feel like she was falling behind.

So, when the day of the exercise portion of the final exam arrived she felt that she needed to prove just how much she had grown. Unfortunately, her trial against Thirteen kind of put her entire hopes of demonstrating her hand-to-hand skills into the ground.

And when Aoyama had asked her if she was in love with Izuku during the match, she felt as if the world had stopped, and she remembered the infinities in his green orbs. She had won her match by complete accident. In all honesty, she was just lucky Thirteen had managed to stop Blackhole before she was turned into mere particles of dust. In a small way, she kind of wished she had been turned into air because of how embarrassed she was of the way she'd achieved victory. Was it that obvious? Did everyone view her as some love-struck idiot who had no power?

The entire experience was unsettling and confusing and dredged up feelings that she desperately wanted to suppress. Feelings that _needed_ to be hidden away if she wanted to shine.

Naturally, she found herself searching for the one person who all of her inner conflict was centered around, Izuku Midoriya.

When she found him, all she could do was smile. His curly hair was disheveled from fighting, his emerald gaze was so narrowed on the screen in front of him, and he was perfect, that is, until she noticed all the bandages.

"Deku-kun what happened during your match?" she asked, looking him over, and seeing Recovery Girl shake her head in the background.

"Ah, Uraraka-san! We did it! Me and Kacchan beat All Might!" he said scratching the back of his head humbly, his freckled cheeks turning pink. She smiled wider.

"Really?! You're amazing Deku-kun! How did you do it?" she questioned, proud that Bakugou and Izuku had found some way to work together, and nearly 100 percent sure that Izuku, once again, had managed to overdo it.

"Kacchan is the one who did the hardest part…I just got us through the gate!" he said nervously, looking down at the ground and shifting his footing. Uraraka felt her heart skip a beat.

Damn it, keep it down! She scolded herself.

"Bakugou? Is he hurt?" she asked, her chocolate brows furrowing at the pang of worry that cascaded down her back.

Izuku frowned slightly and turned his eyes away from her. His black curls covered the envious expression from her view.

"Uraraka-san." He said seriously.

"What is it Deku-kun?" she said, her tone taking a precarious ring as she was puzzled by the uncharacteristic turn his features had taken.

"Just what exactly is going on between you and Kacchan?" he blurted out, turning his face towards her confused façade.

"E-EHHH?!" she shrieked. What the hell was he talking about? She thought as she began laughing nervously.

"M-Me and Bakugou? Why would you…ahahaha!-"

"Uraraka-san…"

Ochako's giggles faded when she realized the severity of his question. He looked…jealous.

"Deku-kun…" she spoke softly clasping her hands behind her back, her ears ringing deafeningly. Was it wrong for her to feel somewhat excited in this situation? Did that make her a bad person?

"…we're just friends." She stated as boldly as she could.

The small twinge inside her chest made her feel in some odd way as if she was lying, the image of Katsuki fresh on her mind.

"Why do you…want to know that, Deku-kun?" she retorted, looking over him closely.

Izuku snapped out of his introspective state and returned to the conversation as normal, seeming as though he was flustered.

"N-no reason Uraraka-san! S-Sorry for all of the questions ha, I d-didn't mean to pry or anything!" he swore, holding up his hands like he was saying 'I'm innocent!'. Somewhat disappointed by his sudden shift, Uraraka decided to step away to meditate on the events that had just occurred.

"S-So where is Bakugou?" she said, feeling as though the emotions in her heart were crawling up her throat and threatening to spill out of her lips.

"Oh well, Kacchan got it pretty bad out there, he even passed out, but I heard All Might took him to Recovery Girl's office back on campus." Izuku answered, tilting his head slightly at Uraraka's odd behavior.

"W-well I'll catch up with you in a little but Deku-kun!" she said bolting towards the infirmary on campus, and crossing her arms over her stomach. Why were there so many butterflies in there anyway? What the heck had just happened?

A few leaves brushed against her as she continued her sprint.

What in the world was this struggle happening inside of her?

* * *

When finally arriving at the infirmary, Uraraka bent over with her hands clasped on her knees, helping to support her as she breathed in and out deeply. She really had done a full-out run the entire way here. Hopefully she could get some peace and quiet since this was the infirmary, she thought.

Once she had herself under control she peered into the window on the door and saw the hulking figure of All Might at someone's bedside.

"So much for peace and quiet…" she muttered dejectedly.

She gingerly pushed the door open, to be as quiet as possible and walked until she was right beside All Might.

"Hello young lady! You're not injured are you?" the hero inquired, a large smile plastered on his chiseled features.

"N-no Mr. All Might I'm okay!" she assured waving her hands back and forth, grateful for the pro's concern.

"Well then, what brings you here?" her teacher asked. She let her smile drop as she examined Bakugou. There were scrapes and bruises carved into his skin like a design.

His hero costume was ragged from various tears and cuts in the fabric, and he wasn't even awake. And Izuku's odd question was ping-ponging around her brain like a record stuck on loop.

"I came to see if Bakugou was okay." She answered honestly.

"Is that so? Well I must inform you, young lady that young Bakugou might not appreciate your concern-"

"That's alright I know he won't!" she cut the muscular pro off, knowing her mouth was already going to reveal all of the things going on internally.

"But his temper doesn't scare me, nope, not one bit!" she affirmed, earning her a smile from the blonde hero beside her.

"Besides," she continued. There was no turning back, because it was all coming out one way or another.

"as long as he doesn't know I'm here, he won't feel like I don't think he can handle some damage!" All Might turned his gaze from Uraraka back to the unconscious student in front of him. He noted how well she seemed to understand young Bakugou's feelings.

Yet, the hero wondered about how young Midoriya felt about this connection between young Bakugou and young Uraraka. If he recalled correctly, it would have seemed as though his apprentice and the girl had feelings for one another. But as she was right now, worrying over another boy, he pondered whether those feelings had dissipated.

"Um, how come he's still unconscious?" Uraraka's question pulled All Might from his thoughts and he cleared his throat before answering.

"It would seem that I have overdone it with young Midoriya and young Bakugou. Recovery Girl informed me that it would be awhile before he will awaken." All Might confessed.

"Oh…" All Might witnessed the fallen expression on the young hero's face.

"Well you wouldn't be All Might if you didn't overdo it!" Uraraka giggled. All Might narrowed his eyes.

"Young lady, I don't mean to pry on your personal affairs, but is there another reason you came here?" he asked her seriously, taking notice to the fact that she was still avoiding his gaze, and watching young Bakugou's chest rise and fall.

"Well, if I'm telling you the truth All Might…when I heard that Deku-kun and Bakugou would be working together it got me worried." She started…looking over the explosive student with tenderness.

"I knew that you would be hard on them both, especially if they couldn't cooperate but…" All Might listened intently.

"…even though they don't get along I think you should know that I don't believe Bakugou hates Deku-kun because he thinks Deku-kun isn't worth his time. I think he can't stand Deku-kun _because_ he thinks Deku-kun will surpass him at some point." Uraraka declared.

"Their whole situation isn't very easy. They both are so different, and communicate so oppositely of each other that I don't even know how to fix it. I'm so worried about them, because, what if one day the villains come back and the have to fight them together? What if they never work out their differences? What if I have to choose which one I'm going to save because they're too stubborn to communicate?" Uraraka could feel her hands clench into fists, her fingernails were biting the skin of her palm painfully, but she didn't care.

"If Deku-kun can't become more like Bakugou, and if Bakugou can't make peace with Deku-kun then they'll both fail." Uraraka wasn't entirely sure how she ended up like this, trembling in a nurse's office, nearly working herself up to the point of tears. She opened her brown bleary eyes, which she'd shut without thinking when she felt the weight of a hand patting her back.

"Young lady, I believe that young Midoriya and young Bakugou are in very good hands, with you as their friend watching over them, however…" All Might stood beside her moving his hand to the top of her head, trying to keep the poor girl from crying.

"…there is no need for you to worry over where they'll end up, because I will guide them! Do not hinder yourself because of a squabble between your comrades, with time they will find peace." Uraraka tried to calm herself by believing in All Might's words but it was difficult to shift her viewpoint on their debacle. And it wasn't as if All Might could stop the tug of war that was happening in her chest.

"I realize that these feelings may be hard to dismiss but if I may offer you some encouragement?" he asked, peering down at her as she nodded slowly, her lips quivering.

"These two may one day find themselves chasing after you if they don't watch it." His words managed to cease her shaking, but he knew she would have to work out the kinks on her own time.

Uraraka who was flattered beyond words by the number one hero's compliment she found herself putting on a fake smile once again.

"Thank you, All Might." She said in a volume only a few tunes above a whisper.

All Might smiled and said he would leave young Bakugou in her capable hands. Walking out the door he paused to look over his shoulder at Uraraka. That girl had enough sense of maturity to care about the well-being of those around her but he could sense that she didn't have enough care to worry about herself, and that would one day become her greatest battle.

As All Might left the scene a final thought came into his mind. Would young Midoriya be the one that would put that girl's needs above his own, or would it be young Bakugou?

When the hero shut the door to the room, Uraraka felt the first wave exhaustion rush over her body. She scrambled to pull a chair beside Bakugou's bedside. Instinctively she reached her hand to touch his but paused.

' _Just what exactly is going on between you and Kacchan?_ '

Guilt held her back from Bakugou. Why had she come here? Why hadn't she just run back to the classroom or home?

Becoming more and more enticed by the fluffiness of Bakugou's mattress she conceded to laying her head on the expanse that he was not touching. Her hand was curled a few centimeters away from his.

She breathed in the scent of room. It was a clean smell, like when the laundry has just been done, or when you step out of the shower after a long day.

As her eyelids became heavier and heavier she rested her gaze on Bakugou's relaxed features and wondered why she felt so torn.

* * *

Katsuki Bakugou awakened to the soft heat of the sunlight and the scent of disinfectant and band-aids.

"Shit, goddamnit." He cursed as his blonde lashes strained to open. His first thought was whether he and Deku had passed the exam. And then came the pain.

"That damn nerd better have passed or I'll kick his ass for this." He mumbled feeling the aches of his back and the sores across his skin.

As Bakugou became increasingly aware of his surroundings, blinking away the drownsiness, he noticed the small stature of a girl at his bedside. Her red-tinted chocolate locks were strewn about his sheets, and her short steady breaths indicated that she was asleep. He realized it was Uraraka.

How long has she been here? He wondered as he examined her.

From what he could observe, there didn't seem to be any serious wounds, maybe a scrape or two, but nothing that would land her in here with him.

So, the question remained, what was she doing here?

"What the…" when Bakugou tried to move his hand he realized Uraraka was already laying claim over it. Her delicate fingers were clasped loosely around his calloused palms, but what startled him the most was the almost air like quality of the pads of her fingertips. He didn't think anything could feel that soft, it was almost like brushing over a cloud. Her lips caught his attention next, they were slightly ajar, and glossed over. The pink tint of them made him want to figure out if they were as palpable as her fingers were.

He felt his ears begin to turn red and shook his head to clear the thoughts from his mind.

What the hell was going on with him?

He brought his free hand towards her, with the intent of rousing her, but found it tangled in her hair instead, her smooth, gentle, hair. He let the strands dance between the crevices of his digits as he tensed.

He turned his scarlet orbs back to her curvaceous figure.

That bodysuit, fit her almost too well. Her supple chest was rising and falling so rhythmically, her eyebrows were knit together almost like she was confused.

"Dammnit Uraraka…" he spat, feeling embarrassed by his own observations.

Her fingers closed around his lightly, startling him.

"Tch…" He didn't really mind her touching him like this. In fact, it wasn't bad…at all. It was kind of…nice, even though it confused the hell out of him.

What was with the heaviness in the air that seemed to be suffocating him all of the sudden?

Sighing, the blonde-haired teen laid his head back against the pillows, relaxing his muscles, focusing solely on clearing his mind. He didn't anymore problems to deal with at the moment.

But, as much as he tried, the heat of Uraraka's grasp was just too loud to ignore. He shut his lids abruptly, pulling her hand into his grip a little tighter.

It wouldn't hurt to stay like this a little longer, at least until she woke up.

* * *

 **A/N:** Phew! There's chapter 4 for ya! What a angst-fest! Soooo who do you think it will be that takes care of Uraraka in the end? Splodey or Izuku? Where is this going? What comes next? Will they be able to stuff down all their feelings? Do they even have feelings? What kind of feelings? Was this making you feel as confused as the characters? Let me know _all_ your thoughts, comments, and concerns below! I would also love to know what you thought of Uraraka's little outburst, and Bakugou's strange complacency with letting Uraraka touch him. As well as Midoriya's little jealous streak there! Until next week!


	5. Summertime Sadness

**Disclaimer:** I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copyrighted material.

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 5: Summertime Sadness

How did it all end up like this?

The question, seemed to swirl around Ochako Uraraka's mind like water going down a drain, circling and circling, but never leaving straight through.

She tried to focus on the homework in front of her, laid out on her desk neatly. But it was impossible to give her full attention to the topic of society's history when the events of the summer were still so freshly scored into her mind. The letters seemed to blend together into one giant blob of ink on a page.

She tapped her pencil absentmindedly, the repetitive sound dredging up a memory before everything had spiraled out of control…

" _Wow you're surprisingly good at that!"_

She had said when Bakugou was chopping up dinner, it had been the first interaction they'd shared the entire summer. He used the knife like it was just an extension of his own hand, smooth and precise. The muscles in his back rippling up and down with each motion. Katsuki seemed to be good at anything he wanted to be, if he had the patience for it.

" _Why the hell wouldn't I be? You trying to say you're better than me roundface?!"_

Now that she thought about it, she felt kind of dumb. A small smile tugged at her lips. Of course Bakugou would be good at anything that involved something dangerous like knives. He was never afraid of anything except failing.

Uraraka sighed and leaned back in her chair letting her brown hair flop behind her. She wondered if Bakugou was in danger now? If he was he was probably laughing.

It was one of the things about him that made her mistake him for All Might at times, kind of like Deku-kun's smile. Whenever he was facing a wall, he laughed in spite of it.

Her head began throbbing as she relayed some possibilities as to what the villains had done with him.

Was he safe?

Her cheeks warmed as she became more and more aware of her own weaknesses. Everyone was hurt, in some way or another. Deku-kun had basically torn his body to scraps, his arms so beaten up that he might never be able to use them again if he overdid it, and what did she have to show for her effort?

"Pathetic…" she was too weak to keep this from happening to everyone. To keep her friends away from harm. She was no hero.

She still had so much to learn, so much to do. If Izuku could break his arms until his bones were in mere pieces, how much more could she have done?

She bit her lip, the flesh threatening to bleed from the pressure.

What if Bakugou was suffering because of her shortcomings?

She remembered the look on Izuku's face when she'd come to the hospital to see him. She remembered the agony in her chest when she saw the blood-stained bandages wrapped over his arms as he sat there with a defeated smile, and hollow eyes looking back at her. He'd mangled himself completely for someone who didn't want his help. He was someone who protected people with everything he had to give no matter the cost.

She remembered the anger she felt when her classmates decided they would go and rescue Bakugou. What were they thinking? How did they think Katsuki would feel if the one person who made him feel weak came to rescue him from something he thought he was equipped to handle? Why did Deku-kun think he was invincible to death?

" _I think Bakugou…will just feel disgraced…"_

 _ **BBBBrrrrrIIINNNNggggGGG!**_

Uraraka set down her pencil gently, letting the thoughts ping-ponging around her brain settle, and pulled out her cell phone, she pressed a soft fingertip to her temple and rubbed fiercely as she swiped the answer option.

"Hello?"

"Turn on your T.V. to channel 1 right now!" she frowned looking at the I.D. of the caller. A picture of a pink girl with bright yellow eyes stared back at her.

"W-What? Mina? What's wron-"

"Just do it Uraraka! Hurry!" Uraraka did as the girl said and rushed into the living expanse of her home, leaving her homework forgotten on her desk. She searched until she found the remote and flipped on the news. She dropped the device as soon as she saw the scene appear.

"Are you watching yet? Basically, All Might and Aizawa-sensei found where the villains were hiding thanks to Yaoyoruzo! She made one of those tracker things with her quirk! But do you see him? You see Bakugou right?!"

Yes, she felt her eyes well up, she saw him there right on the screen. The outline of blonde spiky hair, the straight back, and the characteristic undaunted grin in the face of the enemy.

Uraraka had a terrible tendency of crying in situations like this, when she was so overwhelmed with multiple emotions that she didn't know how else to express it.

But…Bakugou was alive, he wasn't crying out in pain or screaming in fear. He was okay.

She flipped through all the channels while Mina talked with her as they watched the onslaught of All Might's battle against All For One. Every single channel was broadcasting the same entrancing fight. Until her finger froze mid-push.

"M-Mina are those…"

Her brown eyes widened as she saw several faces appear from an opening of a dark matter that appeared, faces that still haunted her dreams at times. The nightmares were there in front of her playing out on the screen like a movie, and their target was obvious.

They were still after Bakugou.

It was pretty clear to her that All Might could do nothing to stop both the boot camp villains' and All For One at the same time, he was just beating himself because Bakugou was there, he would be hurt if All Might went all out.

She bit her nails to stubs as she watched hoping that somehow Katsuki could get away. If only she was there right now, maybe she could show him just how strong she could become. She wanted him to look at her like she was his equal, someone who never backed down from a fight.

But even if she left now what good would it do? So much could change in seconds on the battlefield. By the time she got there he could be saved, or killed, or injured.

She bent her head to ground, clasping her hands above it as she shut her tear-brimmed eyes doing the only thing she could think to do in that moment. She prayed, with every shred of hope to anyone that might be listening, that he wouldn't die.

"U-Uraraka! Do you see that?!" Mina called out in awe. She heard the gasps of the reporters come blasting from the speakers of the television.

She looked up and felt her stomach go into free fall. Did praying actually work?

" _What? What's this? Some unnamed civilians have managed to rescue the former captive, Katsuki Bakugou from the fray!"_

As she watched the familiar red-haired 'civilian' pull Bakugou out of trouble, hand in hand, she couldn't be fooled by the cheap disguises.

A smile came over her pained features. There was her curly-haired freckle-faced boy, Izuku.

Uraraka stood up throwing both hands in the air and cheering until her lungs hurt. The tears were flowing freely and she didn't care.

Everyone would be alright, because Midoriya was there. He always found a way to get out of a pinch.

* * *

 **A/N:** Pretty short chapter today but forgive me! I have been having exams this week but I still wanted to give you guys at least something! The next update will be longer and possibly sooner (and angstier). Even with its length, I hope you guys enjoyed this little tidbit of Uraraka's feelings. Did you catch some things? If so, what? I'd love to hear all your thoughts below!


	6. Blocked Up

**Disclaimer:** I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 6: Blocked Up

The aromatic scent of lavender surrounded Uraraka's senses as she lathered in the gooey substance of shampoo in her short brown locks. She kept her eyes shut tight to keep the foam out of them.

While the feeling of cleanliness was nice, she still felt as though she'd aged about ten years due to the stress of the events of the previous weeks.

Life at U.A. was never completely peaceful, it seemed. There were only brief moments like this one, where she could allow herself to be raw, unedited, and scared.

Uraraka stepped directly into the stream of warm water letting it drip through her hair, cleansing the chocolate strands and watching the foam circle the drain, wishing that it would wash away all her confusion too.

The fight All Might had with All For One had led to his shocking, and somewhat disturbing retirement, she would be lying if she said it didn't phase her. She tried to put on a brave face, say everything would be okay, and rub some dirt in the wounds of herself and everyone else in the class for the sake of easing their growing fear. But out of everyone, even more than herself, Katsuki and Deku-kun seemed to be the most effected by the tumultuous shift in power.

Bakugou was uncharacteristically silent. And the weight of his silence, was so heavy on her. He was always yelling, declaring, shouting from the top of his lungs that he would 'be the best' or 'become the number one hero', but now that that burden had come to pass he just seemed…quiet.

Midoriya on the other hand had always calmly assured his friends and fans that he would save everyone with a smile just like All Might. But his smile, was nowhere to be seen. His mind to seemed to have wandered off into a distant place she couldn't reach.

She wanted to tell him that she thought he would become a great hero, that he would still be able to save everyone just like…he always saved _her_ but...

The simple, ominous fact remained; the symbol of peace was gone.

She turned the knob of the shower until the water ceased to run.

She took a tentative step out of the shower, the steam still clouding the bathroom. She pulled a pink-colored towel embroidered with cherry blossoms of a rack and began to dry herself off.

" _You're in love!"_

Her damp strings of lavender-scented hair stuck to her face as she recalled Mina's accusation.

She felt somewhat embarrassed by the entire ordeal. She had been so incredibly tired, so worn out, that she'd admitted to Mina and all the other girls in class she just felt...blocked up. But she never thought she'd be put on the spot light for her feelings.

She wasn't angry at Mina though. Mina was the kind of person who just freely confessed how she was feeling or what she observed. It was kind of nice to have someone so bluntly honest around, she was optimistic. Everyone needed some comic relief in times like this.

But what Uraraka found the most disturbing, was that labeling this 'confusion' she was feeling as 'love', made everything all too real. Until that moment, she had never called it that. She didn't want to, because she was afraid to feel that way, to surrender to it.

Love made someone stupid. It made everything else fall to the wayside. She'd be damned if she let herself become a love-struck idiot, because that would mean she was abandoning her parents, forgetting her debt to them.

If she was going to pursue Izuku with all of herself, she would be putting her career as a hero in second place, and by extension the bettering of her parents' livelihood. No hero worth something put their duty in any priority but number one.

So, it came down to an impossible choice. Izuku, or her parent's future.

She pulled out a pair of pajamas with bunny faces littered over the fabric. She slipped into the garments and preceded to flop down on her bed with a dull _thump_. With her back against the comforter, she stared up at the ceiling, and counted the blades spinning slowly on the fan above her.

She began to think about the scenarios that would play out if she pursued either option.

If she stuck with her original intent for committing to U.A.'s academics, she was certain she would make a decent living as a hero. She would never be Katsuki or Midoriya, but she would make something of herself.

And though she felt it would overjoy her in the moment to know her parents would be living comfortably, not a care in the world, she wondered if in those later years, she would regret her decision.

She wondered if that life would become lonely.

On the other hand, if she went with Izuku, she was certain she would be happy, but…what would she be taking away from him?

 _I'm so selfish._

She couldn't make Izuku's job any harder than it already was. He was trying so hard, so desperately to fill All Might's shoes. She knew it, without him even admitting that he was. He was giving it everything he had plus ultra. He was in a place she couldn't reach.

And here she was…thinking about how she just wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him to stay with her instead of leaving. To choose her over his dream.

Uraraka sniffled and felt hot, fat tears began sliding down her face as she covered her mouth to keep the gasps from being loud enough for anyone to hear.

How pathetic was she? How incredibly self-absorbed did someone have to be to think something like that?

He was trying to save the world, for goodness's sake!

How could she want to receive all his attention when he was trying to give it to people who needed it? Who could possibly want that? Why did she want that?

She felt like a villain. Let's face it, she was trying to stop the hero, not just the hero that resided in her, but the one in Izuku as well. Maybe she _was_ just some dumb love-struck idiot after all.

Now that all the feelings were bubbling out of her in the form of tears, as they often did when she was alone, she felt like she'd received an epiphany about why Bakugou was crossing her mind in the midst of her inner war.

He was in the background all the time. And she thought that perhaps she figured out why.

It was his eyes.

In those deep amber colored orbs was a hidden message that made her feel like she could do this, like she would get through this. He was the only person who looked at her like she didn't need any saving, that she was stronger than she knew.

The way Katsuki looked at her was almost like he was saying 'I believe in you', and that affirmation from him made the days like this easier to bear.

In fact, she wanted nothing more than to run to his room like an insecure little middle-schooler and tell him "I don't think I CAN do this!', and then he would grab her by the shoulders shake her slightly, and stare into her soul with those fierce red eyes and say 'yes you can.'

"God I'm pathetic."

She rubbed furiously at her lashes, trying to dry them and annoyed that she couldn't.

Why couldn't she just push everything down? Why was this so hard? And for all that was good in the world, she sounded so annoying just thinking about her feelings and how she would sound if she voiced them out loud.

She was going to become a hero. Heroes should be able to put these kind of things aside without even thinking, so why couldn't she?

 _RRRrrrinnnnnggggGGgg_!

Hearing her phone go off, was a welcome break for Uraraka's pity party. She picked up the device and breathed in and out deeply to steady her voice. She hit the accept button and saw it was her Father.

"H-Hello?" Damnit, she thought. Her shaking voice had betrayed her current state of being.

"Hey sweetheart, what's going on?" Her dad asked softly from the other side of the line, the concern apparent in his tone. Hearing his voice felt so good during a personal crisis like this.

"U-Um, nothing Daddy everything's fine." She lied, trying not burden her dad with anything he didn't need to be burdened with. He already had so much to take care of and she didn't want to be someone high on his list of worries.

"Well, I had a feeling I should call you Ochako, I can tell you're upset about something, do you wanna tell me what that is?" her father continued, making her eyes well up again. She wiped at them furiously, remembering that her dad would always be the guy who cared about her the most. He always knew when she was upset, or when she was lying about it.

"Do you really want to hear about all of my girl problems Dad? Haha I really don't want to worry you with any of my silly emotions…" she confessed, glancing at the picture on her desk of her and her parents when she was about five years old, and missed the feeling of being squished between her Mom and Dad's arms. She heard her Dad sigh on the other line.

"Ochako, how many time do we have to remind you! It's my job to worry about you! And even though your Mom is better at this kind of stuff than me, I'll always hear ya out if you need it." She laughed in joy, feeling blessed to have such a caring Dad. His mirth and the comforting trill of his steady voice was a comforting stability.

"Thanks Dad, I love you guys so much and I'm still gonna worry anyway…" she managed her eyes now pouring with tears of appreciation instead of sadness.

"Well I guess I knew that, we love you Ochako. And I know whatever my little girl is going through that you'll come out of it stronger than before, you always know how to get yourself out of a tight spot." She laughed and said she would call more often before they said their goodbyes.

When she laid her phone back down again, she busted out a huge smile, thankful for receiving the affirmation she needed to keep her going. Her parents would always be the most important people in her heart.

* * *

 **A/N:** I'm a sucker for Ochako's relationship with her parents. I feel like even though we don't see her Dad appear much in the manga, that he's probably something like this, like super proud of her and never worried that she won't make something out of herself. That's what I tried to portray here! I really hope you enjoyed reading the teenage angst I'm putting Ochako through right now haha, please let me know any of your feelings, thoughts, or predictions below! Your feedback means the world to me!


	7. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.**

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 7: You've Got To Hide Your Love Away

From the time she woke up, to the time she sat down for breakfast in the common room of the U.A. dorms, Ochako Uraraka's morning had gone relatively smooth.

She had her provisional hero license, and her internship all planned for the ensuing year in high school, things in her heart seemed to have settled down as well.

But things took a turn when she overheard a conversation between Mei, Mina, and Yaoyoruzo.

"Oh my god! Congratulations on scoring the class hotty Yaomomo! How'd you manage to pull that off?" Uraraka heard Mina bellow from the couches near the dining area.

She laid her spoon filled with milk and cheerio's down, listening intently, confused on what was happening.

"Well T-Todoroki-kun was very forward about wanting to date me, and I was really surprise-"

"Tell us the good stuff already!" Mina interrupted excitedly.

So Yaoyoruzo and Todoroki-kun were in a relationship now? Uraraka thought. She pictured the two together, and felt that they were a good pair. Both were level-headed, attractive, powerful, the list could go on and on.

"U-Um, well we haven't really done anything yet, since it's all so new right now…" Yaoyoruzo murmured quietly.

"You're blushing Yaomomo!" Uraraka tensed upon hearing Mei enter the scene. She felt a little guilty for holding such an ill image of the girl in her mind, but nevertheless she managed to ruffle her feathers more than any other classmate she had at U.A.

"This is all so embarrassing to discuss!" Yaoyoruzo exclaimed, she could tell from the girl's tone that she was a little flustered by the prying of the other two. Uraraka held sympathy for her, knowing what it felt like to be in her position. She often recently, had found she was in the hot seat for the scuttlebutt on boys.

"Well well, let's not pry too much Mina-chan." Mei concluded. Uraraka could hear the woman saunter over and take a seat beside one of the two girls. She frowned while continuing to eat in silence.

"What other guys are available now that Todo-kun is off the market?" Mina wondered bluntly. She pictured the pink girl looking towards the ceiling and putting a hand under her chin in deep thought.

She resumed eating as she thought about what kind of couple Yaoyoruzo and Todoroki would be. If they would be open or very private, but knowing the both of them she went with private. Todoroki didn't really strike her as the kind of person to tell other guys things that happened in his personal life. Yaoyoruzo might be a little more open, but she also intimidated most of the girls to the point that they wouldn't ask out of fear.

"Oh what about Bakugou-kun?!"

Uraraka chocked on the bite of her breakfast she'd just swallowed.

For some reason the image his bare abdomen came to mind. The toned skin of his muscles rippled with lines of proof from years of hardcore training. She envisioned the slightly flushed look on his relaxed features when she'd taken care of him, and the disheveled state of his blonde tresses sticky with sweat.

Her face heated as she gained control of her airway again, utterly confused with her own brain for dredging up a memory like that for no apparent reason. She tried to focus on the wheat-like taste of her cheerios.

"Yeahhhh, but isn't he a bit…" she heard Mina trail off as she shook off the bizarre occurence.

"Insane?" Mei offered casually.

"I was going to say temperamental but that works too!" Uraraka's lip tugged downwards once again.

She didn't like where this conversation was headed. Bakugou had more to him than his temper, they were the 'insane' ones for being blind to it. He had problems just like the rest of them, though she would admit it was difficult to be easy-going with him.

"You know Mina-chan, sometimes the most incredible people, are the ones who are the least behaved." Yaomomo included, easing Uraraka's tension slightly. Katsuki was kind of hard to define by any singular term or category. He was just a wild card, something that couldn't be caged, at least, not by someone ordinary like she was.

"You say that like you have some experience with the bad boys!" Mina retorted in a sarcastic tone.

"N-No! It's not like that!" Yaoyoruzo claimed defensively. She wondered if Yaoyoruzo did have some experience in that area, she seemed to be the type that had a few skeletons in the closet.

A small side of Uraraka wanted to see what kind of excitement bad boys could provoke in her, maybe they could match the crazy that seemed to have been stirred inside her. Or maybe they were even more erratic. Someone like that might just make her feel as if the incessant monologue droning on inside her head was a sane thing.

"geez…" Uraraka muttered, shaking her head and focusing back on the conversation beside her. She needed to stop being so introspective, or she'd end up muttering nonsenses just like Midoriya-kun.

"You know…" Uraraka narrowed her eyes, picking up a new voice in the mix.

"…rumor is Bakugou-chan has a soft spot for somebody-ribbit-." Uraraka made it out to be Tsuyu by the signature animalistic noise she made at the end of her sentence.

"Really Asu- I mean Tsu-chan, how did you hear this?" Yaoyoruzo inquired. Uraraka could see a sliver of Asui's face as she looked on, intrigued by the new topic.

She wondered if Bakugou would tell her about this new girl, after all, they were sorta friends weren't they? I mean they sparred and stuff, but he was kind of less insufferable than he was when they'd first met. Maybe she could help him with the ladies, her first bit of advice would be not to bark at them whenever they did something that displeased him.

He was pretty good looking though, when he wasn't trying to terrorize you.

"Just-ribbit-from one of the guys." She said, her cute face turning pink, from what? Embarrassment? Tsuyu didn't usually get worked up easily. Uraraka wondered what was going on with her froggy friend.

"Speaking of the guys…" Mina interrupted, steering the conversation back to available boyfriends, as usual.

"What about Midoriya-kun?" This time, Ochako nearly fainted from the spit-take she performed upon hearing Mina's inquiry. Why did she have to suffer through this gossip?

"Well, this is quite devilish of me but I think Midoriya-chan may have some feelings for me." Mei said proudly, the air of arrogance clear in her tone. Uraraka clenched her fists tightly, wanting to go all 'Bakugou-esque' and yell out how annoyed she was by all four of them.

"But, I think I'll just use him to show off my _babies_ to the world, you can't go wrong with a guy that adorable." She continued, further causing Uraraka to lose focus of the breakfast that was starting to swirl around her in a cloud of zero gravity.

"Maybe I'll even get a ring out of it if he falls hard enough." Uraraka realized the various nutrients floating above her and with her focus on her anger being broken for a slight second it all came falling down on top of her. The milk seeping through her clothes, cheerios stuck to strands of her hair, and the cereal bowl rattling on the floor, leaving the four girls on the other side of the wall to turn and stare at her humiliating state.

"Damn it all…"

* * *

Katsuki Bakugou was not a very sentimental guy. He didn't pick up on a whole lot, and when he did pick up on something like a friend in distress, or some chick crying in the open, he usually ignored it.

But when it came to Ochako, he found himself oddly curious. Her antics, entertained his attention most of the time without her knowledge, and her expressions captivated his steeled gaze, he didn't know when it started happening but it had snuck up on him like a surprise attack.

He didn't like to admit that he was interested in someone else's life other than his own. It was too fucking tedious.

But no matter how much he fought it, she had a wide range of capabilities all pinned up in her tiny body and it interested him to watch her tear through everything she did with brute-like strength disguised in a pretty face.

Usually, like her name suggested, she was carefree, at least on the surface. But the times when he really attuned his small capability of empathy was in times like this, when her features were contorted into an abnormal state, when the mask of innocence was discarded. Her thick brows were knitted into a scowl that rivaled his own, her lips were pressed tightly and her hair was a ragged mess. He followed her glare towards the chick with googles at the front of the classroom. He didn't know this bitches name, but he wondered what she'd possibly done to land outside Uraraka's good graces. The gravity wielding student was basically a pot of nauseating friendship to any and every one who asked, so what was so unforgivable that had warranted Uraraka's pleasant mood to turn sour?

When lunchtime came, Uraraka's behavior had not changed. Bakugou trailed the woman eager to see her throw a punch or yell at goggles girl, the fact that he was rooting for it made him want to vomit but he justified it by thinking of it like a fight. Fights were something he never missed out on.

But instead of seeing Uraraka do something rash like he would have if someone pissed him off, he found himself feeling like he'd been sucker punched in the stomach.

Her irritated expression morphed into one of sadness. The mirth that was typically overflowing in her bright chocolate-colored eyes was replaced by something that stirred a strange sympathetic twinge inside of Katsuki. Her determined stance crumpled, and he looked ahead of her to see the cause.

Goggles girl was bent over that damn nerd, shamelessly flaunting her inventions to him in a kind of way that seemed flirty. She definitely had it bad for Deku for reasons that escaped him. The way she was cooing every word into that fuck-ups ears made him look away in disinterest.

He didn't give a shit if the Quirkless idiot stuck it to some random slut, what he did care about, begrudgingly so, was the pain he could see in the girl watching from the background unknown to the two a few feet ahead of her.

He recalled the toothy smile she wore whenever Deku was around her, the trill of her laugh rang through his ears as if it was happening right next to him.

He turned away, his own mood ruined by the scene.

For a damn nerd, Deku really seemed to be acting like an idiot.

* * *

Uraraka sighed as she traipsed through the familiar path towards the clearing her and Katsuki sparred at together.

She pulled one arm over the other stretching out her tense shoulders as she prepared for another round of getting her ass handed to her. Bakugou was the perfect partner but he wasn't someone who would just be her punching bag if she needed to let off some steam.

What was the point in the first place if she knew Bakugou would win? She wondered if Mei had a 'baby' that could defend against explosions, maybe then she'd be able to do something without difficulty.

She shook her head, her emotions were getting the best of her, and even though she knew it, she couldn't control the foul air that settled over her.

She stepped into the arena like setting and cleared her throat so he would be aware if her presence. He glanced in her direction, taking a momentary pause from his string of nitro-glycerin infused blasts.

"Listen up roundface cause I'm only gonna say it once," she frowned, not in the mood for any of his condescending comments.

"whatever shit you're dealing with use it." She looked at him in surprise, expecting him to say something much more deterring than that.

"You won't even be able to land a punch if you can't use your little girly problems to your advantage." And there was the part she had originally anticipated.

She readied herself for his onslaught of blows and tried to psych herself up to defend her honor, but she couldn't shake off the feeling of just wanting to give up.

His first swing, landed the hardest, followed by a series of smaller attacks leaving her out of breath. She used half the effort she normally did to try and get him from behind with a rock she'd touched but he anticipated it and dodged, leaving the rock flying towards her.

She moved out of the way only to be catapulted forwards by another explosion.

"What the fuck is your deal Uraraka?!" Katsuki yelled at her, the furious slight clear in his crimson orbs.

"You're too sappy to even fight me huh?!" he screamed, when she refused to answer, or even get up from the position she'd landed in. She wondered if Mei had a machine that could make her feel like she wasn't drowning in her own weakness.

"Shut up…" she said weakly pushing herself up from the dirt, feeling the substance dig deeply into her palms.

"If you want me to shut up the make me damnit! Quit sitting there like a fucking wounded animal!" he retorted angrily, his fists searing from the frustration he was experiencing with her attitude.

"Maybe I'm just not in the mood, did you consider that?" she responded angrily to the scowling hothead in front of her, so close to her face that she could practically feel the anger rolling off of him. Why was she feeling afraid?

She scrambled around as he threw another explosion towards her, only making her feel more defeated.

Uraraka looked up apathetically from the smoke to see Katsuki towering above her.

"You asked me to fucking train you, and you give me this shit?! I don't care if you feel like it or not, heroes always _win_ , that's why you have to fucking try." He spat at her, and she just continued to look up at him.

What was the point in trying if you'd already lost?

Nothing resembling fighting spirit exuded from her lifeless form. That same damn look of pain still stabbed at Katsuki like a thorn in the side.

"What happened to the warrior I fought at the sports festival huh? You're just gonna take me like a fucking twig?!" he continued to berate her with tactless questions until she responded quietly.

"That was different…"

"Oh yeah? How huh?" he demanded, the vein in his forehead protruding. He was angry with her, she didn't know why. She couldn't put in enough thought to analyze it either.

"It just was!" she yelled back, feeling overwhelmingly defenseless to Bakugou's cutting words. He was stronger than she was…yet…they both felt vulnerable when it came to the same person.

Izuku.

"Why? Because back then some whore wasn't trying to jump Deku right?" The image of Uraraka and that nerd plagued Katsuki's mind, shifting his shitty attempts to coax her out of jealousy and into confidence, to outright blows to her self-esteem.

"Back off Katsuki…" She begged. He was tearing her down and he knew it, but he wanted her to know how shitty it was to watch her act like this over…over some damn moron who didn't know what he had waiting for him. This was all too much fucking drama.

"Are you an idiot? Do you know any hero out there who gives up in a battle because a villain tried to take something from them and they didn't like it? Huh? What kind of hero would give a rat's ass about that?! If you have a problem with it, fight for it your goddamn self!" He didn't want to stop berating her. He wanted her to know…all of the things she was doing to him.

The way it made him feel to see her hair fall in front of her face like that, the way her lashes fluttered whenever he looked into them, and how it made him wanna smile.

The way that every time her skin brushed his, be it in a battle or just by accident, it electrified his very skin.

He wanted her to see what a piece of crap she was for making him feel all those sappy things.

"Katsuki…please…stop it…" Her pleas were blocked out by his rage with his own weakness to her. Why couldn't she see it? Was she as oblivious as Deku?

"Maybe you should just sit there like a pathetic waste of space and be jealous of that chick with the goggles, at least she fucking goes after what she wants."

Katsuki finally was silenced when he felt the sharp sting of Uraraka's hand against his cheek. The skin burned slightly from the hit. He kept his mouth shut and turned his gaze back to her slowly. What was he doing?

He could see the glistening pile of tears refusing to budge from the corners of her fierce, hurt eyes. Her hand was raised and she was breathing in and out roughly, as if the slap had taken all of her strength.

His words were born from his own green-eyed monster, and he couldn't take back the damage it might have done to her.

But…

Weaklings were easy targets, for someone who felt weak like him sometimes.

Ochako Uraraka was no fragile being, but the girl before him, was somebody he didn't recognize, somebody who hadn't earned his respect.

The determination he craved from Uraraka was nowhere to be seen in the stranger in front of him, and it made him sick to his stomach to look at.

Bakugou silently rose to his feet, and stomped towards the exit of the clearing, pausing before setting down the trail and turning back to the vulnerable person sitting in a heap behind him.

"Don't you fucking dare come back here, until you can handle an actual challenge." He turned away from the ghost of the girl he'd come to acknowledge as his equal and felt like an absolute jerk. He was just a piece of shit that was trying to help her in the only way he knew how, selfishly.

But the fact that he was attempting to do a good deed didn't make him _not_ a piece of shit.

* * *

Ochako and Bakugou did not meet again to train in the clearing the entire week following their dispute. Both were wrestling with their own thoughts and feelings about each other and Izuku Midoriya's hold over them.

Each time Bakugou caught sight of Uraraka he would turn away more irritated than before she'd come into sight. Her big brown doe eyes were shielded from his gaze and he didn't want to see the same expression he'd last viewed. A face that held nothing but weakness and was easily hurt by something like his petty words.

When Uraraka passed Bakugou, all she could think of was the truth behind his painful words and how little of her he must have thought. How weak she must appear to someone as brilliant as he was. And somewhat of how angry she was with him for the way in which he'd shown her how pathetic she was being.

Neither one was willing to break the uneasy silence between them.

So, the task was left in the hands of Eijirou Kirishima.

Kirishima had taken notice of the increase in BRE's or, Bakugou Related Explosions, over the past few days and decided to take the matter to the person which he believed to be the cause of them, not just for the sake of his friend, but also for the sake of the scorch-marked boy's dormitory.

The suspect in question was currently dazing in and out of reality as she stared across the vast expanse of U.A.'s campus.

"Hey Uraraka! What's goin' on?" he asked cheerfully taking a seat beside the zero-gravity girl. For someone who could make things float she definitely looked like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.

"O-Oh Kirishima-kun, not much, how are you?" he took note of the deeply troubled look in her eyes and looked out at the scenery trying to find a way to approach what he'd come to investigate properly.

"Things have been just as crazy as they usually are around here." He said laughing softly as he studied his classmate. Bakugou surely had said something that had hurt her feelings, because he couldn't imagine Uraraka having done something that would make him angry enough to just avoid her.

"Yeah…things are always moving forward." She said as if she was attacking herself by saying so.

"Uraraka, do you mind if I ask you a question about Bakugou?" he said, hoping he didn't sound too eager.

"Oh…sure." She said returning his glance.

"Is everything okay between you two? I hope that doesn't sound too forward, but it seems like you guys have some weird thing going on." Uraraka looked at him seriously, as if she wanted him to know what she was feeling just by looking into her eyes, but he wasn't very good at reading minds.

"Can I ask you something actually Kirishima-kun?" Kirishima was a bit surprised by the turn of the conversation but obliged her request nonetheless, curious to hear what she wanted to know.

"How are you such good friends with Bakugou when he's so mean to you all the time?" Kirishima tried to take her question seriously but ended up chuckling through his fingers anyway. He didn't know why it was so humorous a question, but all he could do was picture Bakugou's scowl and his own unrelenting forced friendship over the explosive student.

"What's so funny?" she asked, perturbed by his odd actions.

Kirishima felt his stomach settle with the laughs that roared throughout him and wiped his eyes breathing in deeply to steady himself.

"I'm sorry Uraraka haha, it's just I wasn't expecting such a blunt question." He confessed to which the girl blushed in embarrassment and looked away quickly, the somberness in her eyes starting to dissipate.

"I-I'm sorry I didn't mean to pry-!"

"Aw don't worry about it! I wouldn't be a man if I couldn't answer something so honestly asked!" he said patting her on the back with more force than was necessary.

"Bakugou is kind of harsh, and he's got a big mouth, and he's got some pretty bad manners but, it would be a lot worse if Bakugou just ignored me." Uraraka listened intently, hoping Kirishima would elaborate on what he meant by that statement.

"You see, Bakugou doesn't really meddle with anybody, it's only with people he's come to respect…" Kirishima turned his eyes to her, and in that moment the brutish, red-haired classmate seemed really wise to her.

"I can't say I really know what's happening between you guys, or what you're dealing with, but I do know that Bakugou wouldn't have done whatever he did, or picked up on the things you're struggling with if he didn't respect you. And even though he's got a really funny way of showing it, he does care at least a little bit for those he respects." Uraraka mulled Kirishima's words over carefully. Thinking back to the exact words Bakugou used. If she thought about what he was getting at instead of viewing it as a personal attack, she could see where Kirishima had a point.

"If Bakugou respects me, then why wouldn't he just try to help me like a normal friend?" Kirishima laughed aloud at her question once again.

"You know for someone who seems to understand Bakugou better than most, you're pretty blind to his feelings! Bakugou's way of 'helping' if you can call it that is by pushing you over the edge until you can find a way to break through the wall you're up against yourself. Sure, he can be a total ass, but deep down he's a good guy." Uraraka felt a chill run down her spine as Kirishima's words clicked in her mind. She flattened a palm against her face.

Bakugou wasn't some sadistic bastard who was trying to beat her when she was down. He was just to frustrated with her for not being able to overcome it herself.

"Sorry Kirishima-kun, I've been so self-absorbed that I just feel a little dumb now that you've said that." She said, offering a small smile as she felt her chest swell with an emotion other than angst.

"It's okay Uraraka! I feel pretty dumb most of the time, especially with all the extra remedial classes I have to take." Uraraka laughed at the spiky-haired student and they continued to make small talk until Uraraka managed to glance at her phone for the time.

She stood quickly offered a quick apology to Kirishima and excused herself. She rushed towards U.A.'s forest grounds hoping she would make it in time. She promised Kirishima that things would be fine and thanked him for his concern and advice.

She felt adrenaline surging through her as she rushed to make it to the clearing before Bakugou left. She hadn't felt like this in a while, like herself again. Her legs were pumping as fast as she could manage.

She wasn't sure why the knowledge that Bakugou's method of helping was actually to 'hurt' you was so comforting, but it was. She wanted things to be righted between them too, she knew it would be okay. He was just trying to bring her out of her own little funk.

As she came nearer she heard the familiar sound of explosions taking off, and smelled the scent of burned wood, she felt her heart race.

Panting as she entered the area, she couldn't keep the big, dumb smile from stretching over her face as she come closer to the blonde, sweat-drenched hot-head in front of her.

She reached out a hand to try and tap him on the shoulder but blinked in surprise when she found herself staring up at the sky. The tops of the tree's were staring down at her along with a certain classmate hovering above her with red-hot eyes and a easily triggered temper. His weight was pinning her against the dirt floor of the woods.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he growled at her as she simply blinked again and then smiled at how angry he acted. Under all that 'toughness' was a big softie just like Tsuyu had hinted at that morning a week ago. He wasn't so scary, and she was an idiot for forgetting that. He had a split-personality.

Bakugou, the raging, selfish hot-head 'king of explodo-kills'; and Katsuki, the thoughtful, somewhat helpless in the ways of friendship teenage boy, who was her friend.

"Um…thankyou?" Uraraka didn't mean for her words to come out like a question, but it just happened. She was grateful for so many things the first being the way he never took things easy on her. She needed him to smack her sideways it seemed.

And as important of friends as Iida-kun and Deku-kun were to her, they weren't Katsuki.

He never gave up, and she wouldn't either, not if he kept pushing her forward.

She paid close attention to his amber orbs as they mollified into a softer expression.

"What the hell for?" he grumbled, his sweaty palms still pinning her to ground beneath him. Ochako smiled sweetly as a breeze rippled through the area, as if it was trying to help clear the air of miscommunication between her and Katsuki.

"Katsuki…" she said softly, having the sudden urge to wrap her arms around his neck and pull him to her.

"…thank you for trying to help me see that I was being an idiot, even if it was kind of harsh." She stifled a giggle as his severe features took a shocked twist. A ripple of pink spread throughout Katsuki's cheeks as he continued to stare at her like she was a puzzle he couldn't quite piece together. He released her from his grasp and sat up, crossing his arms and turning away from her, like a five-year old, as she let her giggles loose, his impressive scowl only deepening.

"Quit saying so much girly shit." He pouted, and Uraraka placed her hand to her chest. She felt it racing beneath her fingers as she remembered Kirishima's words.

Katsuki wasn't someone who would sugarcoat things, he didn't pick you up if you fell down, and he wasn't a person who would try and talk to you about your feelings. But he was someone who cared enough to force you to face your inner demons yourself, and he didn't do it for just anybody.

In his own way Bakugou was looking out for her. That simple understanding made her feel like even if she messed up again, or acted jealous, or sad, or angry, that she was invincible, because someone like him was right there behind her propelling her ahead, even if he had to do it with the heel of his foot.

Katsuki stood and looked back at her scratching the back of his head with his flushed features still turned away from her.

"Let's go." He said in a low voice.

As his muscular back faced her she couldn't stop the urge that spilled out of her lips.

"You're really different from what I first thought!" she blurted out loudly, shutting her eyes in embarrassment.

"What the hell do you mean by that?" he said incredulously, swiveling to glare at her.

"Um…I thought you were kind of cruel and not very nice, especially because of Deku-kun. But, I know that you're not just a jerk anymore…" She felt like she was giving him a love confession, with the amount of embarrassment she was feeling behind every word she spoke.

"Who says I'm not fucking nice?!" Katsuki bellowed, which only made Ochako start to laugh as he fumed over that particular comment, wondering if everything Katsuki said was just an attempt to keep people from seeing the soft side of him.

Maybe it was a mechanism to see who would actually try to get to that part of him, to see who would dare to break down that wall.

"Thank you…Katsuki…" Uraraka said quietly, feeling triumphant in her new discovery about the so called 'heartless hot-head' of class 1A.

"Tch." Bakugou spat and turned to leave, but he couldn't stop the smirk from tugging at his lips and the gallop his heart seemed to be racing to. That girl following behind him had that same look in her eyes that kept him inexplicably intrigued. Uraraka's all-over-the-place personality never disappointed him.

"Are you coming or not?" He could hear that same trill of laughter she had when she was with Deku, from behind and it only made the smile growing on his defiant lips harder to conceal.

Uraraka fumbled to stand and felt her eyes brim as she watched Katsuki's lithe form retreat towards the tree line, because he was finally looking at her again like she was a force to be reckoned with.

"I'm coming!"

* * *

 **A/N:** **Wow, that chapter was a doozy. Welcome to the end of Caged's longest chapter to date! I sincerely hope you enjoyed it as much as I loved writing it. I wanted to also give a brief thankyou to all of you that have reviewed this story or favorited/followed it! It means so much more to me than I could ever express in words. So thank you! Please continue to tell me all your feelings and thoughts below! Until next week!**


	8. Different

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.**

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 8: Different

" _Did you hear about the fight between Midoriya and Bakugou?"_

Where am I? Uraraka thought as she took in her surroundings. Her palms were sticky with sweat and caked in what looked like blood, there were dirt-filled scratches on every knuckle as if she'd been brawling like a man in a bar fight. She was sore in odd places and felt the harsh terrain of the barren ground beneath her.

"Uraraka-san! Ahhhhhh!" Uraraka whipped her head to the right hearing blood-curdling screams that made her spine stiffen in fear. She knew that voice. An abrupt gasp escaped her lips when she saw Deku pinned firmly against the ground a familiar grey-haired villain looking her way.

" _Midoriya and Bakugou were fighting again, can you imagine if they ever had to team up against villians?"_

Shigaraki Tomura removed the severed hand covering his face to reveal a cracked, chaffed, sickening smile. His gnarled teeth and rotting flesh made her feel sick. With a laugh that made her skin crawl, she watched unable to move a muscle as he gripped Deku's arm tightly, small spasmic chuckles erupting from the evil-doer. She watched in horror as the one person she looked to for hope, the one person she thought could never fail, the one who held her heart was being mutilated by the quirk of his oppressor. Izuku's flesh peeled away from bone, and the muscles disintegrated down to the tendons, which crumbled away to expose the bare bone. Blood-curdling screams ripped through the air as her green-eyed comrade was slowly disappearing in the most unsettling of ways. Tears sprung to her hazel eyes as she looked on, not able to turn away. The disease-like corruption continued working its way across Deku's entire body, while Shigaraki continued to laugh in spite of her catatonic state, the cries the curly-haired boy made only becoming more desperate with each passing second.

His emerald eyes looked to her frantically, shifting around in pain, for help and just as she summoned the strength to stand.

Yet, as she put a trembling foot forward in Izuku's direction, another all-too-familiar cry stopped her in her tracks.

" _Bakugou can't even be in the same room with Midoriya without saying something awful…"_

She turned to her left, feeling a panicked sweat rage across her matted forehead. Spiky ashe-blonde hair and determined red orbs met her tear-stained gaze.

"Uraraka!" he shouted throatily as numerous Nomu's gripped each limb of Katsuki's body and began to pull away, step by step. She could hear his bones snapping and the sight of his appendages twisting into positions they weren't supposed to. The strongest of the creatures had Bakugou's head in between its massive hands like a grape. When it began to push inwards the yells and gurgles that came from her classmate made her heart swell like it was going to burst. She reached her hand out to him trying to stumble towards him, choked tears and snot running down her face.

"Uraraka-san, help me!" Izuku screamed.

"Ur…ara…ka…" Katsuki pleaded.

She couldn't choose. They were both at death's door, both calling out to her and she didn't know who to pick. Who was she supposed to save in a situation like this? What was she supposed to do? Both meant so much to her in different ways, how could she lose one and not the other?

" _You're a failure, Uraraka."_

* * *

"Ah!" Uraraka awoke in the dark shade of her dorm room, covered head to toe in a hot sweat. She breathed in and out deeply as she tried to calm her frayed nerves from the nightmare she'd just experienced.

It was just a dream, it's not real, and it's just a dream. She told herself as she removed the damp covers from her body, and swung her pale legs out to hang down limply from the sides of the bed into a sitting position as she let the cool air of her bedroom rush over her heated skin.

She clutched her head in between her hands, gently massaging the throb that gripped her racing pulse.

"What does this mean?" she voiced aloud, in the silent expanse of her bedroom.

Her mind began to wander to Deku-kun and Bakugou, what this rumored fight could have meant for their already fragile relationship.

Had it been completely severed now that some brawl, serious enough to warrant a three day suspension, had ensued between them?

She didn't know, couldn't know without all the facts. But one thing was certain in her restless, sleep-deprived mind: her fear of having to choose between the two should she ever have to save one or the other was going to be defined from this outburst between her friends.

Her ebbing uncertainty of herself also lurked in the background of her brain.

If she was ever in a situation similar to her nightmare she didn't know what she would have done. Just like in the dream she was afraid she would freeze.

Something had to change between them, so had this fight done that? For the better or worse?

* * *

After a long, contemplative shower, Uraraka headed down to the common room for some catching up on her homework. It was apparent she wasn't going to be able to sleep any time soon anyway. The common room was really nice when nobody was in it too, the quiet never broke, and it was peaceful hearing the consistent hum of the refrigerator. She found herself spending many late night hours in there by herself, thinking.

As she trudged down to the large space she heard the sound of a spray bottle followed by the swoosh of a cloth sweeping over counters. She turned the corner to find Deku cleaning the place, even though it was already spotless from its incessant attention from Bakugou and him.

His emerald gaze was concentrated on the granite underneath him, his palms pushing down harshly as he furiously scrubbed away at lingering bacteria. His dark curls bouncing with every motion he made.

"I didn't think anybody would be down here this late Deku-kun." She said cheerfully even though she was still a bit shaken. It was a welcome relief to see him focused on some menial task instead of crying out for her to save him with his flesh ripping apart.

"Oh, Uraraka-san! Sorry! What're you doing up this late anyway?" he asked, looking up at her with a bright smile on his freckled cheeks.

"Oh, well you see I've been pretty lazy these last few days and needed to catch up on some homework!" she half-lied, leaving out the part where her distraction from studying was actually him.

"Well since it's you, Uraraka-san, I'm sure you'll be able to get it all done on time anyway." She smiled at his kind words and sat at one of the stools lining the island of the kitchen. She laid her notebooks down gently and tucked a strand of damp chocolate hair behind her ear.

As she tried to focus on her school work she was still having trouble, she glanced around nervously, and even though she knew they were the only two up and awake, it still felt like the silence was loud enough to constitute a room filled with chattering adolescents.

She sighed and scooted out from her wooden perch, feeling her feet patter against the carpeted floor as she made her way past him to the sink piled high with dishes.

She turned the knob on the sink, and felt the warm water rush down across her hands and spray over the food encrusted plates as she began to clean them, the bubbles from the soap tickling her fingers as they popped on contact.

"U-Uraraka-san! You don't need to do that! It's my punishment for fighting with Kacchan…" he started and muttered off quietly at the end of his sentence, as if he was embarrassed by the fact.

So it was true, she thought as she continued on despite Deku's assurances. When he stopped fretting and returned to his wiping she looked over her shoulder to study his cute girlish features.

There were purple bruises lining his jaw and long scrapes on his elbows, she felt her brow furrow and looked away as anxiety gripped her and a little bit of embarrassment. A blush slowly spread over her cheeks as she thought about how nice it was, being here with him. She closed her eyes for a moment and imagined that instead of being in a high school dorm they were in a house. And instead of cleaning up after their classmate they were just picking up after their kids. And instead of worrying about their futures they were just living, everything had worked out the way she wanted. But that was all imaginary and so far away. And so was the dream….she thought, trying to remind herself that Deku was here, safe, and alive.

"Deku-kun…" she started softly, breaking the silence.

"What happened between you and Bakugou-chan?" she asked, and after waiting for several moments she turned off the sink and whipped around to face Izuku.

There was a small, sincere smile stretching his lips.

"Kacchan and I actually talked about our feelings."

Uraraka's brow continued to scrunch together in disbelief at his revelation. _The_ Katsuki Bakugou she had come to know and even claim as a close friend talked about his _feelings_ with the person he hated most? What kind of game was that?

"Then how come you're both in trouble, Deku-kun?" she asked innocently, returning to her task half-heartedly.

She heard his endearing chuckle and then saw him rub a hand through the back of his head, his bandaged cheeks turning a shade of pink. She remembered it was rude to stare and turned her chocolate gaze back to the cutlery in her palms.

"Kacchan isn't someone who can talk really without putting up a fight first." She giggled thinking about how easy it was to rub Katsuki the wrong way. She wondered what the hot-head would say if she asked him the same things she was asking Deku right now.

"Deku-kun, I'm relieved." She said honestly, pausing in her work.

"I was worried…for a long time…that you and Bakugou-chan would never break down the wall he seemed to put up between you two, and no matter how much I wanted to tear it apart myself I knew only you could do it." She finished, her expression shrouded from Midoriya by her side-swept bangs.

She turned slowly the let the over-head light envelope her features, revealing a bright smile and glistening brown eyes.

"Forgive me, Deku-kun, I should have known you can overcome anything!" Izuku felt his heart squeeze and made the same ugly expression he'd shown at the sports festival when she'd come through for him. She was so pure. She was always beaming, always believing in him.

"Uraraka-chan…thanks!"

* * *

After they both cleaned together for a while, and talked about all the small things happening in their lives Uraraka went to bed feeling at ease, with a huge smile plastered on her round face as she jumped under her dry covers, snuggling in them happily. She was even able to go to sleep un-plagued by any further nightmares.

"This is so tiring!" Uraraka exclaimed as she fell backwards onto the mulch-like ground of her and Bakugou's training arena. She breathed in and out as she felt her eyelids droop from the exhaustive dedication she put into pushing herself just as hard as she would've had to if her blonde, explosive partner was here. She actually kind of missed him, even though it had only been two days since they last saw one another. It was like her body craved the adrenaline that coursed through her veins whenever he was near. What was it about someone so incredibly dangerous that was almost addicting?

She winced when a fat droplet of rain splattered on her nose, pulling her out of her nostalgic thoughts.

She frowned, not wanting to get up, but also not wanting to catch a cold given that internships would start so soon. She couldn't fall behind the others, not even for a second.

She grunted as she stood and started a light jog back towards the dorms, her thighs screaming in soreness. Upon coming out of the forest she noticed a figure in the distance. She squinted, trying to make out its owner in the obscurity of the rainfall.

Was that Bakugou?

She slowed her pace as she came closer, making out familiar bleached spikes and glowing amber eyes. Her clothes only managed to become heavier with her prolonged stay in the downpour.

Katsuki was just standing there, with bizarre almost awe-strickening expression coating his face, it was neither angry nor sad, as he stared up at the stormy clouded sky. She couldn't really understand what he was doing, but a sense of importance hit her as she neared his position.

"Hey Bakugou-chan! You'll catch a cold if you stay out here you know!" she called concerned through the torrential cacophony engulfing her senses.

"Bakugou-chan…" her sweet voice trailed off in the overpowering beat of the rain, her hair becoming slicked to her skull, and Katsuki continuing to stare ahead, as if he was deaf to her call.

Suddenly the boy turned to look at her, and she was seized with a hot surge of confusion in the cold wash of the rain.

"Uraraka…" he said uncharacteristically gently. Even in the rain she could make out the bruises on Katsuki's cheek and scratches along his neck that disappeared under his water-logged clothing. She was sure the beatings were more prominent there, hidden where she couldn't see it.

* * *

"Bakugou-chan is everything okay?"

Ever since he was a kid, Bakugou could remember the cathartic effect water seemed to have over him. Some people drank herbal tea, or went out on a run to keep their minds from snapping, but he always preferred to just get in the shower.

He didn't know why this occurred, he thought maybe it had to do with the manic nature of his quirk, but nevertheless the soothing substance seemed to be able to wash away all his damn frustrations.

So, it was natural, that he'd be drawn outside by the rain in a time like this one. Ever since he let go off his fear of Deku surpassing him, and knew that All Might's retirement didn't rest solely on his moronic actions and weaknesses things had opened up before him like he hadn't known previous.

And of course, the one thing he'd been trying to ignore, trying to stomp out, was standing here beside him, calling out his name like she was afraid, afraid that he was gonna waste away in this damn rain.

This damn gravity-defying woman.

Seeing her was like putting on a pair of glasses for the first time. Feelings that shrouded him in confusion, clarified as she peered up at him in concern, with her large sunset-stained orbs.

He liked her…no…it was more than that. It was so much more but he wouldn't fucking dare say it.

If he said it would destroy him. Maybe in a small way so would ignoring it.

But…all he knew was she was right there in the midst of the storm. Calm, captivating, and still. It reminded him of what an eye of a hurricane was supposed to be like. Everything around them was just noise, except this…except her.

"It's different now…" he said without yelling, without any sort of hostility fueled behind his words. He looked from her back to the sky, filled with thunder and lightning, to his calloused hands and then back to her.

* * *

"What's different no-"Uraraka's words fell short when she felt lean, muscular wrap around her torso. They were toned and firm in ways she didn't, but should have, expected. She could feel the heartbeat of the person they were attached to, pounding like the sound of the rain on the pavement against her chest as Katsuki held her like that. He was holding her like he didn't want to let go.

"It's all going to be different now…" he said, his voice racking through her mind like the boom of the thunder slapping against the earth.

What was happening to her? Was this a dream too? Katsuki was holding her and she couldn't even reach out to him, she couldn't understand.

But, as swiftly as the embrace had happened it stopped. He released her, and started walking away towards the entrance of the dorms building, his hands shoved into his pockets.

His soaked back was turned to her.

She was speechless and completely wet to the bone. She wasn't quite sure if this was reality or something she'd just imagined.

But she knew that something huge had just changed between her and Katsuki, she wasn't sure exactly what. Yet his short powerful words echoed in her mind.

Different, she thought, that was what he'd told her…he was different now.

* * *

 **A/N** **: Hello everybody! I'm so sorry this update took a teensy bit longer than normal, but I wanted to add this chapter in, instead of the one I was originally planning to upload. I just felt like this will Segway into next week's update better. Also…I GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL YESTERDAY! The wait is finally over and I guess I'm sort of an adult now? In any case I'm excited for what's to come and so should all of you! Things get a little steamy in next weeks update!**

 **ALSO, can we talk about the most recent episode in the anime! OH MY GOD. It happened, they had their match in the sports festival oh my goodness. I have never been so fired up to write more Kacchako goodness in my life!**

 **But anyways! Thank you all for your continued support and please let me know what you thought of this chapter below!**


	9. Buffer

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.**

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 9: Buffer

Life at U.A. seemed to take a new turn in the second year of high school activities. Not everyone came to class every day, people kept to themselves more often. There simply wasn't a whole lot of time to just sit around and be carefree adolescents. Some students in class 1-A had internships and some were taking the measures needed to be able to begin an internship.

Such was the case for Katsuki Bakugou who honestly couldn't give a fuck about these damn measures. They served as nothing but a roadblock for his ultimate demolishment of Deku.

He wished people didn't need so much goddamn saving all the fucking time. He didn't have the necessary patience to deal with old farts complaining about their arms bruising or their heads hurting all the time or yelling at him for god's sake.

He was going to win for them couldn't they see it? He was going to be the number one, most coolest hero, just like All Might. They'd see. And he was stronger than Deku. Or, at least he was going to be. As far as he was concerned, he thought it was due to that damn nerds personal relationships that he let his focus slip. It was just a damn hiccup in his path to becoming number one.

A certain gravity-manipulating classmate didn't make matters any fucking easier either.

That damn Uraraka was always trying to confuse everything. But he was done with that…at least that's what he tried to convince himself of. He didn't need to "steal" Deku's girl anymore, he'd just steal the number one spot. That was enough right?

Yet…he still spent moments of the recalling that afternoon she'd caught him in the rain. The determined look in her brown eyes, the way her chocolate hair clung to her rosy cheeks.

Even the way her lithe body felt pressed against his, the softness of her frame, the round edges to her outline. The surprise in her kind features at his words. Her hot breath against his neck…

"DAMN IT!" Katsuki shouted, his face a deep red mix of anger and embarrassment. There he went letting her take the spotlight again.

"Bakugou what the heck is your problem?!" Kirishima whispered at him loudly, using a book to shield the glare of the librarian from him.

"Don't worry about it." Bakugou spat and continued to try and maintain focus on the assignment at hand. He heard a slight chuckle from his red-headed companion.

"What the fuck are you laughing at Kirishima?" he glowered at the male seated opposite from him, not amused.

"Dude your face is as red as my hair." He busted out in stifled laughter as Bakugou's eyes widened and he clenched his teeth in embarrassment. His own damn body was betraying his efforts now too? That damn Uraraka…this was all her fucking fault!

"SHHHH!" Bakugou turned his venomous amber glare towards the old hag sitting behind a desk to his left. She could hiss at him all day for all he cared.

"Bakugou keep your voice down or we'll get kicked out!" Bakugou contemplated flipping the table for a second, but also didn't really feel like leaving the library and trying to find somewhere else that was quiet.

He turned his glare once again to his homework. He'd been forced to do these stupid assignments a lot during the daytime now that he was training every night for the makeup hero license exams. Speaking of which, his damn muscles were sore.

"Dude, what's wrong with you? You've been acting all weird lately." Kirishima butted in, as he used his right hand to try and get his arm to stop spasming. He chose to try and ignore his friend, which led him nowhere.

"You got a girlfriend I don't know about or something?" Bakugou sighed and shut his notebook.

"Shut up Kirishima, I've been working my ass off for this damn re-test." He said lowly.

"You're telling me! I gotta study for all these remedial courses just to keep up! All this stuff just goes in one ear and out the other to me." He finished scratching the side of his head.

"Yeah cause you're a dumbass." Bakugou stated flatly.

"Yeah but at least I'm a dumbass that's got a license to be a hero." Kirishima chuckled.

"KIRISHI-…" Bakugou stood up feeling the start of his emotions blowing out of control when a certain distracting classmate walked into the fray.

She looked…different…slightly. He'd been avoiding their usual sparring sessions at night, though she hadn't said anything to indicate that she cared about his absence. Not that he cared that she didn't care, it was just an observation and he had only trained with her anyway because it was for his own benefit.

Bakugou sat back down, forgetting about he and Kirishima's teasing conversation, futilely trying to comprehend the words on his literature assignment.

But every few seconds his gaze gravitated back to her. Her hair seemed to settle at a higher point. Like she'd cut it or something. Her full cheeks seemed to have gotten a little less round than he recalled. Maybe she'd been working out more?

"Bakugou…what're you staring at man?" Fucking Kirishima.

"Keep your eyes on your own damn book Kirishima! I'm not gonna fucking show you how to do that problem again!" he hissed.

"SHHHH!" Bakugou growled scratching his neck irritated by the commotion surrounding him.

"Tch, old hag." He muttered under his breath.

Soon after checking that Kirishima and the librarian were minding their own business, he returned his sight to Uraraka standing between the bookshelves a few feet away.

She was looking intently for something, searching all of the shelves and letting her padded fingertips brush over every copy she looked at. His eyes settled on a baggy sweatshirt settled over her figure. It looked worn, and a bit rag tag honestly, but it bothered him.

It looked like a man's sweatshirt.

Too big to be Deku's, he thought contemplatively.

"Fuck…" he cursed under his breath. Once again he'd managed to lose his focus. Bakugou stood quickly, gathering his things in his school bag in a hurry so that he could leave.

"Oi, Bakugou where are you going we still have to-"

"I'm leaving." He said, cutting his friend off completely as he turned towards the exit. Before swinging the doors open he threw a final backwards glance at Uraraka, every detail of her face being burnt into his memory like a brand.

"Too many damn people in here…"

* * *

As Bakugou entered the familiar expanse of his dorm room he let out a string of multiple curses.

"Why the hell do we even have a stupid curfew anyway?" he said angrily to the ceiling, staring down at his bruise-ridden body as if it was pitiful. He tried to regain control of his breathing. He'd had to run his ass off trying to get in the building before that damn Aizawa set off the alarms.

He lifted a calloused, sweaty hand to his cheek to feel the new damages he'd received.

Groaning as he moved off of the bed, he casted a tired glance to the pile of homework on his desk that he hadn't managed to finish earlier that afternoon. Unfortunately for him, they were all due the next day.

"Fuck."

Exhausted and feeling his muscles starting to stiffen, he quickly turned on the water in his shower, stepping in as soon as the temperature suited him. He began to feel his eyelids droop as the warmth seeped all the way to his brain.

Meanwhile, Deku was probably enjoying counting sheep on the floor below him at this very moment, worry-free and homework finished.

Punching the knob to OFF Katsuki stepped out of the bathroom toweling his blonde locks and throwing on some clothes before he scooped up all of the assignments he needed to complete before at long fucking last being allowed to sleep for what little remained of the night.

He trudged down the hallways of the dorms, enjoying the silence that surrounded him. It wasn't often that noise wasn't completely filling his ears. Noise…among other things…or people. He'd become accustomed to doing his homework down here when he didn't get a chance earlier in the day. Todoroki, the only other soul who was probably awake at this hour, never came down there either.

Turning the corner towards the common area at the base floor of the dorm building he found for the first time, another person in his 'private' space.

Short, choppy chocolate strands and a familiar round face gave away the trespasser, who of course, was seated in his favorite spot.

He moved closer, slinging his school bag over his shoulder prepared to demand the zero-gravity-girl to move it.

"Oi! Urara…" He fell short. Upon closer examination Katsuki noticed that the gravity manipulator was indeed, fast asleep. Passed out right on top of the counter with the concealed half of her face buried in a notebook. Her porcelain fingers were still loosely gripped around a pen. He shifted his eyes to her assignment. Literature, the same as his. What a dumbass, he thought concerned. He wondered how long she'd been down here. He also was curious why she'd been doing this so late? Didn't she have the luxury of 'excused' absences to help her out?

Apart from avoiding her, even in places like the classroom where she was forced to be in his vicinity, he rarely caught sight of her anymore. The days she spent at her internship were increasing week to week. The days where she didn't cross his path seemed to go by in slow motion. And although he attempted to convince himself that those days were better, times like this, where she was so close, seemed to contradict his mind. It was encounters like this that made him question everything, and wonder why his chest was beating so fast that it seemed like his heart would break out and leap straight into her delicate hand.

It was so damn annoying.

He turned to leave, nearly accepting he may just have to score a few less points than that fucking nerd by turning in his things late, until he stopped due to the sudden rattle of the air conditioning turning on. He looked back over his broad shoulder at Uraraka, she was only wearing some loose sweats and a light tank top. The chill of the cold air hit the back of his neck unexpectedly.

He sighed and shrugged off his own sweatshirt. If she got sick, he rationalized, then he'd be forced to see her around more often, and that fact, as much as the damn organ in his chest was going wild for it, was not something he wanted to deal with.

He carefully laid the tan-colored hoodie across Uraraka's shoulders, watching in an embarrassed panic as her brown lashes began to flutter around as she readjusted her position slightly.

"Da…ddy?" she called out in a deluded state of sleepiness.

Turning on his heels to leave before she noticed Bakugou heard the sounds of the gravity girl's body shifting upwards.

Damn it, he thought sullenly. He hadn't intended to wake her up. The last thing he wanted to give her was a fucking explanation for the jacket covering her body.

"Mmm Bakugou?" he heard her call out in a yawning voice as he continued to move as quickly and quietly as he could to get out of her blurry line of vision.

"Hey! Bakugou-chan!" she called out more insistently, stopping him in his tracks. He heard the small pitter patter of her bare feet clomping against the carpet.

He slowly turned to face her, her eyes held a hazy kind of astonishment, and clutched tightly in her arms was the hoodie.

"Why're you running away again?" her voice was light, like the chirp of a bird singing a damn lullaby. Yet, it was layered in concern, just like always, just like in the rain that day. Why was she always so fucking worried? Didn't she think he could handle himself?

"Tch." Katsuki turned to walk away, hoping she'd be too tired to try and stop him without another damn word. But…that was the thing about Uraraka, she never fucking gave up.

A small tug pulled him away from his attempt and he clenched his jaw.

"Bakugou why're you avoiding m-"

Bakugou whipped towards Uraraka, boxing her in towards the wall beside them. He slammed his fist on the space beside her head, leaving the girl to jump in surprise at his sudden outburst.

"Shut the hell up already! Jesus Uraraka quit fucking worrying about me, I'm not your fucking dog you got it? I can do things by myself?" Why was she looking at him with those damn eyes of hers? Why was she so damn close? Why couldn't she just fade to the background like everyone else here?

Uraraka bit her quivering lip.

Why had he ever decided to try and get someone like her to like him? The fact that he actually cared now about this 'gravity manipulator' was such a fucking joke.

"I don't need you." Katsuki growled venomously, struggling to hold conviction behind his shallow words.

Uraraka stared up into his perplexing amber eyes. She looked like she was still half-asleep. Her hair was disheveled and her cheeks as rosy as ever. Bakugou let his hair shield her from his gaze, and instead settled his eyes on the ground in between their feet. His arm slowly dropped to his side.

He felt a burning sensation, he was sure she was still looking at him.

Suddenly, he flinched as he felt familiar, soft fingerpads gently glide across his chest, and slowly work their way up to settle on his cheek.

He raised his head to look into her eyes. He could feel the heat spreading throughout his cheeks, certain she could see it to.

"…sorry…" she breathed out softly. This girl had some sort of will stronger than she let on. He could see glimmers of it in her large, captivating brown orbs.

He raised his hand once again to gently grasp her wrist, he let her touch linger a few moments longer and then pried it away, letting Uraraka's arm return to her side.

She looked like she had no clue as to what exactly she was doing, but she'd successfully managed to make him question everything yet again.

All of his planning, all of his goals, he was forgetting in this moment. And the only thing that was left in the space of his mind was this damn, infuriating, un-fragile woman.

"You look sad Bakugou-kun…" she whispered quietly, he looked away from her.

Sad huh? He thought sullenly.

Well if sadness was what this feeling was then he could live with that.

Was being sad what made him want to reach out to her in this moment? Was it what made everything she did so interesting to him?

Was it the thing that urged his brain to think 'I want to kiss you' right now?

If that's what it was then yeah, he was really fucking sad. He was goddamn miserable.

He wondered if she could feel how heavy the air had gotten, and if, as she could do with anything she touched, she would attempt to lighten the atmosphere that was between them.

"I-is this yours?" she asked timidly gesturing to the jacket in her grasp with her head. Bakugou ran a hand through his ashen hair and nodded slightly.

She blushed visibly and tried to hand it back to him. He shoved it back towards her and turned away yet again.

"Just put the damn thing on okay?" He said and began to exit the room, mentally scolding himself for caring about whether she would have gotten a cold in the first place.

"T-thankyou…"

He paused again, frowned, and then kept moving. His heart beginning to race wildly again.

"You're welcome."

* * *

 **A/N:** **Sooooo I ended up re-writing this chapter about three different times! Mostly because I started this story with the intention for it to follow the manga as it progressed, and in turn, as the characters in the manga matured and we learned more about their backstories! So I know where I want this story to end up going, however I am undecided about whether or not this will be the last chapter that loosely follows the manga or if the updates for this story will become sparser as the manga progresses. So if you don't see an update for a few weeks or so don't fret! This story will continue! It will just be a slow ride haha. All that said, I really hope you all have been enjoying this fic so far and I hope you will continue to! Please let me know your thoughts and feelings below! What you think I should or shouldn't do! I love hearing all of you guys' thoughts and encouragements! AND OMG WE HIT 30 REVIEWS! Thank you guys so much! Until next time!**


	10. Nerves

**Disclaimer : I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copyrighted material.**

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 10: Nerves

Uraraka, Ochako had experienced episodes of anxiety from time to time since she was a little kid. She tried as hard as she could to ignore them, if she let everything that made her heart feel like it was going to beat its way out of her chest out into the open, she'd be done for. Inevitably though, her panic-driven thoughts seemed to slip through the gaps of the walls she put up in her mind and terrorize her anyway.

There were several things that made her anxious.

The first being the welfare of her parents. Which ironically related into the second thing being how she could possibly help her parents in whatever way possible so that her entire family didn't descend into financial turmoil. And finally, the third being boys. She felt silly even allowing herself to believe that.

Boys should have been the easiest thing to control in her life. She had always simply, avoided them. But there were several instances in her normally mundane life lately that were making the opposite sex rather difficult to ignore.

"Uraraka-chan?" Ochako looked up from her paper towards the voice that called her name, picking up her pen from the dark blob forming on the paper it was pressed to. She couldn't make out the words he was saying, because the heartbeat ringing in her ears was pounding to loudly. His dark green curls seemed a bit out of focus to her, and his face coming in and out of view. She shook her head and blinked a few times bringing herself back into reality.

"I'm sorry Deku-kun, what did you say?" she asked, perfectly disguising the jittery trill in her voice.

She had gotten really good at shutting people out of her mind, and hiding her feelings. She had to, if they knew how deep her worries ran in her, well…she didn't know what would happen, but she didn't love the idea of anyone finding out just what a wreck her mind was.

"I said you seem really out of it today, are you feeling sick?" Deku reached out to touch her forehead with the back of his scarred, calloused hand. As his fingers brushed along her skin Uraraka pulled away, her cheeks tinged lightly with a pinkish hue.

"I'm fine! Really! Just a bit tired." She spouted, smiling at him in spite of her lie. She wanted to tell Deku everything that was going on in her head, and let him tell her the logical train of thought to follow. She felt guilty keeping things from him and Iida. But seeing that this issue in herself was largely revolved around him, she knew it was better kept to herself.

Evading Deku's worried look of concern Ochako went back to trying to focus on the notes in front of her. She scanned the lines of text trying to commit them to memory, but her hand began to shake as if it had its own priorities. She plunged her palms in between her legs and continued, only pulling her hands out from their sheath to turn the page in her notebook.

She sighed and flicked her gaze towards the curly-haired boy sitting across from her. Quickly stifling a giggle by biting her lip, Uraraka watched as Deku mumbled everything he read aloud in a voice that was just a little too loud to go unnoticed by passerbys. She thought it was cute how he got so lost in his studying. She wished she could direct her mind all the way like he seemed to be able to do. Deku was really amazing. His drive to protect others made her certain he was someone she wanted to be like.

… _except_ _you'll never be able to help anyone like he can…_

Uraraka winced as her own negativity lashed out at her.

She envisioned herself staring up at Bakugou at the sports festival. His heavy breathing and maniacal grin glinting down at her as she scrambled to get up.

… _you failed to get anyone's attention because you're weak_ …

Her mind flashed another memory before her, of a plate of food alongside two empty ones and the hands that had prepared her meal.

… _it's your fault they have another mouth to feed..._

She could see Deku's back at the exams, his lean form and the sway of his green locks in the breeze as he looked forward. His slowly raised clenched fist and a broad smile outstretched on his freckled face.

… _you'll never catch up to a guy like him…_

Uraraka's heart continued pounding as self-doubt clouded her eyes. She began to gather her things and slide them into her bag.

"Hey Deku-kun, I just forgot I have something I have to do! I'll see you tomorrow?" she chattered with a fraudulent smile plastered over her features.

"See you tomorrow Uraraka-chan!" he replied cheerily, in the same light-hearted tone he always had. But what escaped her view was the adament worry in Midoriya's expression.

She waved a final farewell and began trekking through the vast expanse of U.A.'s campus. She had no real destination in mind, just somewhere to escape from everybody's eyes and concerned questions as she knew what was coming.

Uraraka panicked as she felt her blood heat, her eyes glisten with hot tears threatening to fall, and a dread that sunk into her bones. Her pace quickened as she scanned for a bathroom or a corner to hide in until the episode passed.

 _Why now?_ She screamed internally.

"Damn it…" Ochako cursed as the first few tears finally escaped over the ledge of her lashes and plop down her rosy cheeks.

Her whole body began to feel unstable, unsteady, and unsafe as she stumbled into the student dorm building, praying that she didn't see anyone. The thought of seeing one of her classmates only sent her into a deeper agitation, as she furiously swiped at her eyes. Uraraka lost sight of what was in front her as she turned a corner and-

 _Thwack!_

She stumbled backwards a bit, and looked up meeting the temperamental stare of Katsuki Bakugou.

"Uraraka what the hell!?" he spat as Ochako locked her teary chestnut orbs with angry red ones. His frustration buckled as he scanned over her features. Her sleeves were damp, he eyes and nose swollen and reddish. Her arms were held up in front of her like a shield, as if she was afraid.

"B-Bakugou-kun…" she whispered looking toward the floor in embarrassment. Bakugou might have been the last person Ochako ever wanted to witness her in this fragile state. She was certain she appeared absolutely pathetic to the man towering over her.

She couldn't meet his gaze, and the worst part was that he was being completely silent, leaving only her shallow breathing to fill the void as she tried desperately to steel her nerves against the humiliation.

"Oi! Kirishima where did Bakugou go?" Alarm bells rang in Uraraka's mind and she begged her body to move, to flee but her feet stayed cemented to the ground on which she stood. She let her fingernails dig into the beds of her palms threatening to draw blood as she remained paralyzed.

 _What should I do? What do I do?!_ Uraraka panicked.

Suddenly she felt a warm grip around her wrists as she was pulled out of the light of the open hallway and into the chemically-scented gap of a janitorial closet.

"B-Baku-!" her surprise was cut off as she was pulled into the chest of her unlikely captor a hand held over her mouth to nullify the sound of her erratic breathing.

"Shh! Do you want them to find out?" he hissed lowly as the footsteps of their friends pattered past the door and their chattering settled into silence. Ochako didn't know what was more startling, the fact that Bakugou had read her mind in a two second encounter, or the fact that she was literally pinned against him hiding inside a closet. Deep embarrassment mingled with a residing anxiety swept over her. She could feel Bakugou's arm loosen and drop away from around her frame and mouth, but oddly enough she still found herself clinging to him.

She clutched the fabric of his t-shirt like it was a life line taking an odd comfort in the hard exterior of his chest. Tears continued streaking down her ruddy cheeks while she still remained determined to hide her face from his gaze as if that would somehow erase this moment from his memory.

The absolute worst part about anxiety was feeling vulnerable, like all your deepest secrets were out to bare and everyone could see them. She always envisioned everyone laughing at what an idiot she was. Uraraka felt as though her entire being was out on display, her worst fears and doubts running throughout her body in the form of tremors and onto the floor in small pools of tears. She didn't feel secure in her own abilities and beliefs; she felt weak compared to those she looked up to.

"Tch, you have to breathe dammit." Uraraka was taken back by the calming soothe in Bakugou's tone despite his choice of words. He usually spoke in such a guttural manner with tiny explodies firing from his hands as he claimed to beat any offender into a pulp.

"Oi." He called again, prompting Uraraka to slowly lift her eyes to meet his, apprehensive about what he would say to her. She was dumbfounded to find his expression was…what could best be described as soft. His eyes were shifting from side to side, and his normally dragging frown was mollified, even his brows were relaxed. His gaze turned back towards hers.

"What will it take to make you calm the hell down?" he growled in a low voice. She could see a flicker of concern in his amber depths; surprised Uraraka thought back to what her parents would do when they would find her in this state of affairs. An image of her father's brawny arms open wide was the first thing that came to mind.

"Can y-you hold me?" Uraraka stuttered burying her face deep into Bakugou's warm torso in self-consciousness.

"Such a pain…" he grunted concealing the slight blush spreading over his features.

His muscular arms pulled her in tightly, making her fear decrease with every second that passed between them. Though her fears didn't compltely disappear, her irrational anxiety over what she couldn't change in this moment, right here, subsided for the time being.

Uraraka's breathing slowed down to a normal rate and her eyes ceased flowing incessantly after a few minutes inside that dark closet, being coddled by the least affectionate person she could imagine.

Never…in her wildest concoctions of daydreams had Uraraka thought she would end up here, inside a cleaning supplies closet, sharing an intimate moment with Katsuki Bakugou, the King of Explosions, who was holding her willingly by her own request. The warmth he emitted was so comforting…she wondered if it had something to do with the nature of his quirk.

"I'm sorry…" Ochako whispered against his collar, feeling strangely endeared to the boy as she turned her head to angle her face towards his neck.

Bakugou said nothing but released her from his embrace, his cheeks clearly betraying the composure he was trying to maintain.

"What the hell are you sorry for?" Bakugou mumbled, avoiding eye contact with the gravity wielder.

"I didn't mean to…I didn't want you to…I'm just embarrassed honestly…" she blurted out, a signature giggle following her admonition.

"My heart sometimes...is just so blocked up...and I just..." she continued, focusing on her shoes.

Bakugou watched closely as she released her hold on him and backed up in the few inches of space left between them in the small room. She twiddled her padded thumbs and seemed to be searching for what to say on the dirty corners of the floor.

"You must think I'm just a pushover…letting things get to me so easily…" He narrowed his eyes, his view of her unchanged and his anger at her for being so childish boiling.

"Listen up Uraraka, I'm only going to say this one fucking time." He began, suddenly feeling claustrophobic.

"Nothing about you is fragile, so don't sit here acting like you can just ignore all the damn problems that happen. That's just fucking stupid." Katsuki's interesting words dawned on her as she realized the weight of the compliment she had just received. Even though it was ill-worded, was he trying to comfort her? WHatever his intentions had been she couldn't even begin to fabricate the reasoning for her next action.

As if on autopilot, Ochako gripped the dark blackish material of Bakugou's tear-soaked shirt and raised herself onto her tip toes locking her plump lips with a certain spiky-haired individuals, her eyes shut tight as she felt the heat of his flesh sear against hers. Katsuki wasted no time in deepening the kiss, moving along with her making her head feel dizzy.

 _What am I doing?_ She questioned as a desire for more surfaced.

She raised her hands to slip into the blonde tresses of his hair, that were surprisingly soft to the touch, as strands flitted through her fingers. This earned her an abrupt push against the hard surface of the closet wall, pinning her in, his hands tethered to her curvaceous hips gripping harshly.

How did they get here? She wondered as she melted into his touch.

The kiss was broken as they both gasped for air, panting and staring into each other's eyes breaking the trance they had both slipped into. The way he was looking at her, filled her with an odd sense of belonging and pride. He was like a half-crazed King of violence who looked at her like she was a Queen capable of destroying all obstacles in her way. And she didn't know why that made her heart beat so fast out of excitement. Only one glaring question remained in her head as she tried to regain her sense of control.

 _What did this mean?_

* * *

 **A/N: Hey guys! Long time no see! I have returned to this story, hoping to finish it for the people who have asked. Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed this story so far, your encouragement is what made this update happen! I hope to bring you another update very soon! Let me know your thoughts of this below!**


	11. Drunken Stupor - Part 1

**Disclaimer : I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copyrighted material.**

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 11: Drunken Stupor - Part 1

She didn't know how she had ended up in this position yet again. She wanted so badly to ignore the familiar thrumming of her heart pounding in her chest but it was getting more and more difficult every second he looked into her eyes with such an _intensity_.

"B-Bakugou-kun…what are you..." her voice fell silent as she stumbled backwards, her rear gently colliding with the countertop edge of the common room kitchen. Katsuki followed her lead. His hands were on either side of her, his crimson eyes pouring all over her body with an expression that made her wonder if she would crumble beneath him. The weight of his body pressed against hers, and the heat generating from his touch…she wondered if he was what was making her heart throb like it was going to explode.

 ***EARLIER THAT WEEK***

Ochako sat in class, in what could best be described as, agitated. Her legs were shaking, her hands clammy, and her lip swollen from being bitten too hard.

She tried to keep her eyes focused on Aizawa Sensei, but the thoughts in her head were becoming too loud to ignore.

Begrudgingly her gaze drifted until it landed on the source of her frustration, a certain spiky-haired blonde who looked as if he could care less about the lesson being given.

She blinked and she was back in that damp, musky closet. Katsuki's eyes staring directly into hers. Those red orbs of his, that made her feel like she was on _fire_.

Confusion and guilt crept into her heart after their excursion. After all she'd basically jumped the guy. How did she explain to Bakugou, whose temper was known for its swings, that she just…reacted?

She recalled watching Izuku run away during the provisional license exams, leaving her in the dust as she looked after him, and the feelings of jealousy that had plagued her mind, keeping her from becoming the hero she wanted to be. She remembered how stupid she felt and how weak it was to succumb to such desires.

She thought Izuku was so cool, he was always able to overcome whatever in his way. He didn't have her quirk but he still seemed to be able to make everything around him float away as if it was weightless, as if it wasn't that hard.

But she had decided…

She had decided she would put her feelings away for the sake of her dream; she had decided to store it somewhere in her mind so that it didn't keep her from the goal she was desperately trying to reach. She pictured herself crawling towards Bakugou at the sports festival, the dirt and gravel scraping at her flesh as she willed herself to keep going forward. The image of victory standing before her, as the sky rained down around her in ashes.

Somehow though, as sneakily as they had appeared the first time, those head-numbing feelings had resurfaced again, only this time it wasn't Izuku in her daydreams.

She had always felt that she had a pretty good understanding of who Bakugou was, and what he stood for. So she was certain he would laugh in her face if she told him how she had been feeling. But still…

She had kissed Katsuki Bakugou, and HE had kissed her back.

What did that mean?

Uraraka sighed, resting her chin in her hand, drumming her padded fingers on the cool surface of the desk she was seated in. Her face flushed as she remembered the words Bakugou had spoken to her so easily.

" _Nothing about you is fragile…"_

His words seemed to haunt her, because she was so surprised by them. They had played over and over in her head like a record. The conviction he held behind them when he had said it only made her head spin even harder.

He respected her. He acknowledged her abilities. He thought she was someone who was strong.

Even in the midst of an emotional breakdown, he had said that to her.

The thing was, she thought it was funny the more she replayed the line in her head.

Katsuki Bakugou, the most volatile, typically ill-tempered, and misunderstood student in their entire class, who regularly slung insults at her friends, had complimented HER.

Her lips tugged into a coy smile.

She moved her eyes back to him.

Uraraka needed to talk to him about it, she knew it wasn't something she could just ignore. Bakugou was more sensitive than he would ever let on, most people just never caught that when they only knew the side he showed to most people. The Bakusquad probably were the only other ones who really understood that aspect to his character. He was kind…sort of…in his own unique way.

She raised her head to pay attention to the class lesson and was met with a scruntinous pair of dark green eyes instead.

"Uwahhh!" she screamed falling backwards in her chair, holding a hand in front of her.

"Sorry, Ochako-chan, do you have a second to talk?" Uraraka gathered herself, standing and dusting off her uniform before smiling goofily at the frog-like girl in front of her.

"Tsu-chan I didn't even see you! I really need to stop spacing out in class." She giggled, scratching the back of her head in embarrassment.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about, kero." Uraraka locked eyes with Asui.

"Ever since we got our provisional licenses, you've seemed to be off, I think it has something to do with Midoriya and Bakugou."

This girl, Ochako sighed, never missed a beat.

"Yeah…" she admitted.

"I think you're right Tsu-chan. My mind has been…really clouded lately." Ochako continued, eyes darkening with disappointment. She wondered if everyone could read her mind as easy as Tsuyu.

"Did something happen Ochako?" she questioned her green eyes narrowing on the gravity-wielder's expression. She noticed how Uraraka's cheeks were flushed a beet red hue.

"I-I…" Ochako stammered, not sure what her friend's reaction would be. Her legs shifted, and she twirled her fingers over one another. She looked again to the floor of the classroom and clenched her hands into fists.

" _I kissed Bakugou…"_ she whispered quietly, her heart beating wildly.

Asui's expression remained unfazed, making Uraraka feel more uncomfortable than ever in the girl's presence.

"I thought so, kero. Does Midoriya-chan know?" she asked, a finger pressed to her chin.

"No." Ochako answered earnestly.

"Ochako-chan, I'm not going to tell anyone about this, but I think you should find some way to tell Midoriya about this, kero." Uraraka nodded, knowing her friend's advice was solid, but also not knowing how in the world she would go about discussing the kiss with Izuku, or Bakugou for that matter. Katsuki had a say in who should know right? She briefly pondered whether he would murder her for even asking him about it.

"Also…I think you should be careful Ochako-chan…" Asui's voice trailed off as her expression turned worried, Ochako refocused her full attention to the frog-girl.

"Bakugou-chan isn't someone who can receive the feelings of others very gracefully. I think you should make sure you know what you really want before you get into a situation you can't get out of, kero." Uraraka felt a little stung by Asui's blunt summation, Bakugou wasn't a being that was void of feelings that everyone else possessed.

"Okay." She answered swiftly, dipping her head slightly and then turning to leave the classroom, her head swimming with lots of things she would have liked to spit back at the girl defensively, but she knew they weren't fair. Asui, even if it was not tactful, was just looking out for her.

* * *

"Shit…" Kastuki breathed quietly his hand shoved into his pockets and his back firm against the wall.

He had intended to talk to Uraraka, to ask her why the hell she thought it was okay to jump him in the closet…even though he found it irritatingly…cute.

But what he hadn't planned on was the damn frog picking apart his every action between he and Uraraka. So damn nosy…he thought.

That girl couldn't keep her nose out of anyone's ass, always sticking herself in places she didn't belong and making big claims about the character traits of her classmates like she had the right to. He could fry her like a damn egg with one shot.

"Tch." He growled stalking in the opposite directions of the sound of Uraraka's footsteps.

The fuck did that frog know about him anyway? He wasn't a fucking monster, or a fucking child. And believe it or not…YES, he had fucking feelings too.

Katsuki felt his palms sear in annoyance and took in a deep breath so that his cover wasn't blown, he didn't know where either of the two women were in the building, and it would be annoying if he had to talk to either of them right now.

He never planned on eavesdropping on people's conversations but he always seemed to be there right as something good was happening.

"Fuck…" he scratched the back of his head and stalked towards the direction of the gym. Kirishima was waiting for him, and he needed a good workout, there was too much tension in the whole damn school. And he needed to try and get that damn Uraraka out of his head.

Her lingering tears and her gentle touch…

"Fucking Uraraka!"

* * *

"Dude! Take it easy you're gonna give me bruises!" Kirishima whined as Bakugou let another fist swing towards the red-head. Bakugou knew he was taking out his anger on Kirishima, but there wasn't a more appealing option open to him at the moment. Kirishima could take the hit anyways.

"Shut up! You're too slow, I'll kill you!" he spat furiously and sent another fist barreling towards Kirishima's face, annoyed at the concern in his friend's expression.

Kirishima's palm shifted in composition, hardening to catch Bakugou's fist.

"What the hell is wrong with you Bakugou?" he asked incredulously, holding onto the blondes knuckles so he wouldn't swing again. He ripped his hand away from the red-head.

"It's none of your business you damn Shitty Hair!" he yelled in response, turning to direct his punches at the sandbag hanging next to him.

"It's got something to do with Uraraka, huh?" he mumbled cheekily, looking on as his friend barraged the equipment, punishing it for an act it hadn't committed. Bakugou stopped cold. His hands firing off miniature scale explosions, enough to warn Kirishima against pushing him any further on the subject.

"Why in the hell does everyone?…fuck this." Bakugou turned to stalk away before he was coaxed into telling Kirishima something the red-head wouldn't keep to himself.

A hand gripped his shoulder, halting him. His body tensed as he grit his teeth in annoyance.

"Bakugou, calm down, you don't have to talk about it. But seriously, you've been going crazy ever since you two started up, I worry about you man." Bakugou slapped Kirishima's hand away once again.

"Worry about your own damn self, Kirishima."

* * *

"Release."

Uraraka plummeted toward the ground, seeing the tree's zoom past in her peripheral vision. She twisted her body slightly and angled her foot just right. With an earth-splitting sound she made contact with the ground envisioning a villain lying there instead of a crater. She breathed in heavily. Beads of sweat beginning to drip down her forehead.

She needed this, she needed to remember what it felt like to train so hard your brain just about turned into goo.

Martial arts really took it out of her.

She stood up, wiping her brow.

"Alright!" she slapped her cheeks and headed off towards the communal showers, ready to rinse the sweat off of her.

As she stepped into a stall and turned the dial so that the searing water would pour over her and ease her aching muscles. Then, she overheard something interesting.

"Did you hear? Bakugou's got a crush on someone!" Uraraka thought she would throw up.

"What? Who told you that?" Another voice asked.

"Sero-kun said that he saw Bakugou all flushed after coming out of a cleaning supplies closet, but he didn't see who was with him!"

"Who would date Bakugou though? He's so scary…"

"I know, but aren't you curious? What if he's different when he's…well…you know?"

Uraraka thought she could literally see her own spirit leave her body, she was so going to die if anyone found out. Everybody was probably going to figure it out soon. She didn't think she wanted that because she didn't even know why she had just…reached for him…with her lips…for his lips.

"Ahhh!" she groaned, momentarily forgetting that she wasn't alone in the steamy area.

"Huh? Uraraka is that you? You okay?" she recognized the voice as Mina's.

"Y-Yes sorry! I just forgot my shampoo!" she lied, embarrassed by her own childish antics.

"That sucks hun, well whenever you're done you should come to the common area, were all just hanging out!" She cooed from outside the curtain.

"O-Okay!"

* * *

Once Uraraka was finished showering, and had toweled her hair until it was mostly dry, she sighed, not sure if she wanted to hang out with everybody tonight. She was really…confused.

 _Bang! Bang! Bang!_

"Uraraka open up!" Ochako jumped at the sudden raps on her door. Slipping on a pair of house shoes she opened it to find a panting Mina.

"M-Mina? Are you okay?" before the alien-like girl even responded she gripped Uraraka's wrist and yanked her in the direction of the elevator.

"Uraraka-chan you won't believe what I just witnessed. You're gonna totally die!" she chirped giggling all the while.

"What?" Uraraka panicked, where they under attack again? Did the villians come back already?

"Just wait." She chuckled, and finally when the elevator door dinged to signify they were on the ground floor, she pulled Uraraka along again until they were at the edge of a crowd of their classmates, everyone was watching intently.

"Bakugou is drunk!" Mina cheered, celebrating by pushing through their friends in order to get a closer view.

Drunk? Uraraka questioned, why was he?...How did he?...when did he?...

Uraraka looked peering through until she found a gap between Kaminari and Todoroki. Her jaw went slack.

"AlienNNN I'm not drunkkkk!" Uraraka saw a pointed finger before anything else.

Katsuki Bakugou, the most fearsome of opponents and hostile classmate was completely wasted.

"Maybe someone should get Aizawa-sensei." Todoroki suggested quietly beside Uraraka.

"Aww c'mon Todoroki! Let's enjoy this while it lasts!" Kaminari retorted slapping a hand on his shoulder and chuckling merrily.

"I wonder where he even got alcohol." Todoroki muttered in response he eyes narrowing.

Kirishima moved in front of the teetering blonde trying to keep a straight face.

"Hey man, I know I said you should calm down but I really wasn't expecting this!" he burst into a fit of laughter until said point of his laughter clutched Kirishima's face in his hands.

"Huh? Bakugou?" Uraraka watched as Bakugou got closer to Kirishima's face until his puzzled expression morphed into a comically distraught one. He looked downright pitiful.

"Oi Kirishimaaa, did I actually bruise you *burp* I dinnnn't mean to." Uraraka felt a laugh creep into her throat. As she watched Bakugou fret over his friend.

"Hey man, I'm really okay! You're the one whose fucked up right now." He said giving a jubilant pat on his concerned friend's shoulder.

"FUCKK!" he screamed and pulled Kirishima into a bear hug, sobbing into his chest.

"Bakugou! Hey! Bakugou!" Kirishima cried, trying to pry the blubbering boy off his chest.

Uraraka found the sight of Bakugou's affection so hysterical she completely busted into a gut-wrenching laughter that filled the room. Everyone's heads turned to her as she wiped away a stray tear, including Katsuki's.

"Ha?" she heard him mutter as he left Kirishima's side and stumbled over towards her. His eyes focused on hers, his typical scowl in place. Uraraka's amusement quickly morphed into panic as he came closer and closer, but she didn't move. She wasn't sure what he was going to say.

Bakugou reached downward and gripped her wrist pulling it up towards his face.

"B-Bakugou-kun what're you?..." her voice trailed off as the blonde studied her palms silently, scrutinizing every detail of it, and finally reaching up a finger to poke at the pads on the tips of hers.

Her jaw went slack as everyone continued to watch as Bakugou kept poking each pad in turn, eyes still locked to her hand.

"….soft…" he muttered and then broke out into a huge smile unlike anything she'd ever seen.

The 1A girls all 'awed' as he turned his smile towards them still gripping her wrist tightly.

"Bakugou is actually kind of cute…"

"He's not so scary when his face isn't all possessed…"

"Holy shit he's smiling!..."

Uraraka was frozen in a state of embarrassment and other mingled emotions. She didn't think she could form words in her throat without choking.

What was he doing?!

She pulled her hand away from him, throwing off his delicate balance and Bakugou slammed backwards to the ground, his smile gone.

"Alright that's enough fun for tonight guys, I think I should help him back to his room." Kirishima interjected into the laughing possy of students.

Kirishima stretched a hand towards the spiky-haired boy and was met with a-

"KIRISHIMAH DON'T YOU FUCKING TOUCH ME I CAN GET MYSELF UP!" Bakugou bellowed, his normal demonic face present.

Kirishima rolled his eyes reaching down anyways and then-

 _BOOM!_

Bakugou let out a small-scale explosion and catapulted himself upright, surprisingly onto his feet. Uraraka had never been more confused as to what the hell was going on in her life.

"See? Toldja." Bakugou proudly smirked and then completely fell over again, this time knocked out cold.

Kirishima sighed and then went to pick him up.

"Uh Kirishima-kun!" Uraraka suddenly called. Eijiro turned back to look at her.

"I can help!" she moved towards Bakugou's unconscious body, still flustered by his odd actions and then pressed her fingers against his firm chest. A pink light scattered over Bakugou as he floated upwards. Kirishima quickly grabbed him by the shirt and began walking towards the hall that both she and Bakugou lived on.

"Thanks a lot Uraraka, this was really helpful!" Uraraka smiled back at the red-head. He was always so encouraging. She looked at the snoring figure above her. She was glad that he had someone like Kirishima in his life.

"Any idea how this happened?" she asked.

"Not a clue, he stormed out of the gym earlier pissed as hell about something." Uraraka's face grew hot. She wondered briefly if it had been because of her.

"But I wouldn't worry about it, he does really stupid stuff all the time because he has no idea how to react properly to other people." Kirishima chattered on as he fished out the key to Bakugou's room from his pants.

"Kirshima-kun, how did you and Bakugou even become friends if that's true?" she asked, genuinely curious as to what the redhead would say.

Kirshima smiled and looked back at her giving a big thumbs up.

"I just kept trying!"

Once they both had managed to get Bakugou on his bed and draped a blanket over him they both turned to leave. Uraraka wondered if he would remember anything tomorrow, or if he'd even maybe even forget the kiss they'd shared almost a day ago. She sighed

"Uraraka…" she froze hearing her name uttered softly from behind her. Kirishima giggled and continued on out.

"Such an idiot!" he exclaimed once he was out of the doorway.

Uraraka too kept walking but paused at the doorway gripping the frame with shaking fingers. She looked back at Bakugou's peaceful features as he slept. And then she turned away, her heart caught in her throat and her mind replaying his words over and over again.

' _Nothing about you is fragile.'_

 ***TO BE CONTINUED***

* * *

 **A/N: This is kind of a transition chapter into the next part of the chapter! I also just really wanted to try to portray a drunk Bakugou haha, hope you guys enjoyed! Good things to come...angsty things to come. Leave a review if you're feeling it!**


	12. Drunken Stupor - Part 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.**

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

Chapter 12: Drunken Stupor – Part 2

Katsuki Bakugou stalked through the hallways of Height's Alliance with one goal in mind: find Deku.

He looked in each hallway, on every single floor, and even resided to banging on the damn nerd's door a few times for good measure but, no dice. He had now resorted to look elsewhere among the campus grounds to find the curly-haired brat.

That little shit better be in the mood for a 'discussion'. Isn't that what he always said he was wanting?

"Tch." Katsuki couldn't help but get royally pissed whenever he had to look at Deku. His green eyes and dumb freckled cheeks made him want to vomit. He would never fucking admit it, but after every encounter he had with Deku he left feeling pathetic. Deku looked at him as if he was some dumb dog barking into the wind and standing up for nothing. He had never beaten him, never been strong when they were growing up, but now was a different time.

Deku had inherited All Might's power, the one power he admired more than anything else in his life. That turnover left him feeling…insecure a lot of the time. He was breaking, and breaking his quirk, bending it to his will. But even when he gained a foothold on a stronger level, he would look up and see Deku had already reached that height.

It was so frustrating to watch as everything he thought he'd earned slipped through his hands and into that bastards clutches.

And no this wasn't really about Deku, and he knew that.

Deep down, he felt like he probably deserved it. Looking down on others was his thing after all. He shouldn't have been surprised when it left him empty and alone to stare at the boy who was always too fucking nice to people. His mom was always telling him that believing in shallow praise would bite him in the ass one day.

It didn't fucking help matters either…that…that damn Uraraka was head over heels for a weakling like Deku.

But again that too wasn't a big shocker either. A girl like Uraraka, who merely laughed and made his whole entire world suddenly feel like it was weightless, absolutely deserve a nice guy like Deku.

Her face ran through his mind once again. He could see her tears sliding down around her supple cheeks, her auburn hair slightly disheveled as she stared up at him. He remembered watching as her lips quivered while she spoke to him, those damn lips of hers.

She could make a man go crazy with those things.

He was certain that the moment the two of them had shared in that closet had just been some sort of reaction due to her emotional state at the time. Panic attacks were pretty common among heroes nowadays. Her having one only surprised him…because he couldn't stop himself from pulling her into that closet once he saw the terror in her wide brown orbs. His body moved before he'd had the time to think about it.

And when she caught his lips with hers, it was all he could do not to take her right then and there, to throw all caution to the fucking wind and have his way with the one who made things float. He hated how damn soft he started feeling whenever Uraraka invaded brain. She was like a damn virus that had infected him with feelings he couldn't shake no matter how much he tried to blast them away.

She was going to ruin him.

He sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets as he vaguely recalled his drunk antics from the previous day. He remembered how cute she looked when she got embarrassed by his touch. God that made him fucking crazy.

He wondered how she'd react if they were close to each other like that again.

What kind of expression would she make?

"Kacchan?" Bakugou stopped in his tracks when he heard that familiar nickname ring out. The only person who dared to call him that was Deku.

The nerd met his gaze, flinching slightly at the intensity he put behind his venomous glare.

"Deku, let's have a little chat," he growled. Deku looked up timidly, he really did look like a rabbit as Kirishima had suggested.

"What do you want, Kacchan?" he asked, his high voice wavering in an attempt to hold resolve. Bakugou's eyes narrowed.

"What's the deal with you and Uraraka?" He looked on as Deku's emerald eyes widened and his jaw went slack in confusion, his head tilting to the left.

"She's a close friend." He finally answered, clearly unsure of what Katsuki's intentions were. Bakugou could see him visibly stiffen under the weight of his air.

"Just a friend huh?" he pushed, set on getting the words straight out of the nerd's mouth. Even if he had to yank it through his pearly teeth he'd figure it out.

"What're you implying Kacchan?" There was that damn look again. Like he was sizing him up, and weighing the options of all the reasons he would have asked him such an incredulous question.

Bakugou clenched his fists, both of which were dripping with a need for him to ignite his quirk.

"I just needed to figure out if you and Uraraka are actually in a relationship or not bastard." He said cooly, in an attempt to conceal the anger growing behind his scowl.

Deku remained irritatingly silent, so he tried once more.

"I mean its pretty fucking obvious you've got her looped around your finger." This time a surprise dawned on Deku's stupid face.

"What're you talking about?" No way. There was no fucking way this guy, who analyzed every minute detail about everybody was blind to see that Uraraka had the hots for him. Didn't he feel notebooks with stupid shit like this?

"Don't fuck with me Deku, this ain't a secret. I know that Uraraka has feelings for you, so I'm asking what the hell you're going to do with that." His voice dropped into a sinister tone, as he kept his gaze fixated on Deku's refusing to look away.

He watched as the fuck blushed shamelessly and then stammered to put together a cohesive sentence, which only played with Katsuki's nerves even more so.

"I don't know where this is coming from Kacchan, but I have no intention of pursing any relationship other than friendship with anybody right now." Bakugou really couldn't stand this guy after all. He even managed to piss him off because of his actions towards other people.

"Tch." He looked Deku up and down, resisting the urge once again to use his quirk and send the bastard flying.

"For a nerd like you…you really are a fucking moron." He said lowly, the timbre of his voice matching the anger resonating inside of him. Deku looked on as Bakugou stalked in the direction he originally came from, wondering what Uraraka had to do with his sudden mood swings over the past few days in class.

Did Uraraka really have those kind of feelings towards him that Kacchan was talking about?

* * *

When the sun had finally disappeared on the horizon and most of class 1A had retired to their dorms for the night, Bakugou decided he would study in the peace and quiet of his usual spot in the common room. It was late as it always was when he came down there. He hadn't been able to have time alone for awhile now. He leaned his head back against the couch and enjoyed the consistent hum of the air conditioning and the view of the night skyline outstretching through the windows before him.

He sighed, still frustrated that Deku was such an idiot. How did he not see it? How did he not see the value in what Uraraka had given him?

Katsuki's body tensed involuntarily as he heard soft footsteps trudge towards him.

"Oh, Bakugou-kun I thought you might be down here." He craned his neck to the side to offer a half-hearted glare at the one person he equally did and did not want to see.

"Uraraka, what do you want?" he asked watching as she sat in the spot beside him on the common room couch. Her legs were folded neatly and her whole body had turned in his direction to face him head on.

"Uh?...Um well…" he watched closely, intrigued by the way she shifted her arms and fidgeted to avoid his gaze. He fought back the urge to smirk.

"Bakugou about the-"

"Don't worry about it." He cut her off staring far into the distance, his mind already predicting what she was about to say. His voice was not as rough as it typically was when he spoke to others. But he couldn't help but feel strangely at ease when Uraraka was beside him. He turned to look at her and his breath hitched in his throat.

Her entire complexion was glowing a bright red hue. The pale creamy sheen of her thighs glinting up at him, alluring his eyes to linger. Her shorts rode dangerously high as she held up a hand to rest her cheek on.

"W-Wait Bakugou I-"

"I said don't worry about it didn't I? You like that fucking _nerd_ anyway right? So, it's fine. It didn't mean anything." His tone came across harsher than he intended, and he instantly regretted his choice of phrasing when he saw the flicker of hurt in Uraraka's brown eyes. But that observation only made him angrier at himself.

"That's not true…" she mumbled almost too low from him to pick up.

"What? Speak up if your gonna say something to me dammit!" he yelled, searching her face for any sign of indication that what he thought he'd heard her say, was actually what she fucking said.

He could see her biting her lip as her cheeks burned with agitation. He rose to leave, he couldn't fucking take the tightness in his chest as he waited for her speak.

"I don't have feelings for Deku!...anymore…" she blurted out, Katsuki froze in his place. Positioned a few feet away from the sofa they'd been sitting on, he heard the same soft pattering of her feet on carpet as she came close to him.

A small tug at the back of his shirt prompted him to turn around to unveil a very flustered Uraraka. Her body was shaking and there were glistening droplets of unshed tears in her eyes. Those eyes that were looking right at him. Those eyes that never backed down from a fight.

"I like you…idiot." She breathed. Her sweet voice shaking as her hand released him.

She watched closely as Katsuki's own body betrayed him, his lips tugging upwards almost automatically. In the midst of his own inner storm swirling around in his head concerning Uraraka and his complicated emotions, he reached out her, a smile clearly present on his lips, pulling her in close.

Maybe his own flesh and blood had figured it out before his mind could catch up, but he had no idea how to tell this girl all of the things he felt. There wasn't a way to rationally have a conversation about it, these feelings weren't gentle enough for that.

So he settled to be like this with her, right now in this moment. This was all he could do to explain.

His hand cradled the back of her head, fingers laced into her auburn locks as their mouths grazed along each other's. God it felt amazing to touch her like this. To savor every bit of contact they shared.

He moved his hands to cup the underneath of her thighs and heard her gasp as he pulled her legs upwards until they settled around his waist. He enjoyed the heat he felt there, in a place meant just for him.

He let her down gently when they reached the kitchen island, continuing to kiss her languidly, slowing down so he could enjoy holding her like this. He could feel every nervous beat of her heart as his thumb trailed down her neck.

This heart…he thought as his thumb ran over the spot.

How could Deku not see this was the gift she'd offered to him?

He pulled away momentarily to look her over head to toe, satisfied at the deep longing he saw written into every delicate feature of her face as she waited for him to continue what he'd started.

He liked seeing Uraraka look like this. He liked it so much in fact that…

He didn't want to stop.

* * *

She didn't know how she had ended up in this position yet again. She wanted so badly to ignore the familiar thrumming of her heart pounding in her chest but it was getting more and more difficult every second he looked into her eyes with such an _intensity_.

"B-Bakugou-kun…what are you..." her voice fell silent as she stumbled backwards, her rear gently colliding with the countertop edge of the common room kitchen. Katsuki followed her lead. His hands were on either side of her, his crimson eyes pouring all over her body with an expression that made her wonder if she would crumble beneath him. The weight of his body pressed against hers, and the heat generating from his touch…she wondered if he was what was making her heart throb like it was going to explode.

His presence almost made her afraid. He was radiating an aura that she'd never felt from him before. Almost like he was a beast of some sort. A beast driven wild with desire.

Suddenly the quiet sounds in background of the sleeping dormitory that had been muffled by her and Bakugou's intermingled breathing were getting louder…much louder.

Someone was coming.

She felt Katsuki's warmth recede from her grasp and was sourly disappointed by it. She looked to him confused when suddenly he planted a chaste kiss against her cheek before she could react. He whispered a soft 'I'll find you tomorrow, angel-face' into her ear and turned away.

She stood in shock, mouth agape the ash-blonde sauntered into the darkness of a nearby hallway, his outline hidden from her sight. Just as he had gone, Kirishima entered. The expanse of the ill-lit area they'd just shared an intimate moment in now felt even dimmer.

"Hmm Uraraka? What're you doing out here so late? U-Uh hey you look kinda red are you feeling okay?" she couldn't respond to Kirishima in that moment, because she almost couldn't hear him over the pounding of her chest.

This feeling…what was this feeling spreading all throughout her body?

She touched her fingertips to the place where his lips had met the skin of her cheek.

It felt as though the places he'd touched were on fire and the places he didn't reach longed to be set aflame.

* * *

 **A/N: Here's part 2! It was kind of hard to write because I'm trying to find where to break the parts up for the next few updates. But, that aside, I really hope you guys enjoyed this one! Til' nextime!**


	13. Confrontation

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own My Hero Academia or any other copy-righted material.**

* * *

 **Caged**

* * *

 **A/N:** **Please forgive me, this is going to be a sad, angsty, so in high-school chapter today, I felt like this needed to happen though. Afterall they are dramatic teenagers and they can't just TELL each other how they feel.**

 **I promise there are better, spicier things waiting in their future.**

* * *

Chapter 13: Confrontation

After counting the shadows on her ceiling more times than she could remember, gazing at the stars, and even downing an entire cup of sleepy-time tea like it was a shot of vodka, Uraraka found that nothing could make her idiotic brain stop short-circuiting.

She couldn't get her mind off of Bakugou no matter what she tried. SHE HAD NOW SHARED TWO KISSES with the explodey, ill-tempered, blonde, muscular, hot-head of class 1-A.

The weirdest part…she didn't hate it either.

Truthfully, she had rather enjoyed the experience and wanted to continue despite the fact that they hadn't had any singular discussion about any of it. Which was probably really irresponsible, but damn, she didn't know Bakugou had been holding out on her. He was pretty charming when decided to be. If he would just relax that damn scowl he always made he would be a lady-killer. His face was actually pretty handsome when he wasn't murderous.

"AH Ochako get ahold of yourself!" she yelled angrily aloud, bashing her head rather hard against the wall she shared with another classmate.

"Ow…" she rubbed the spot that was smarting, and flopped back onto her bed, a flushed heat spreading over her cheeks as she laid defeated.

She was so completely taken back by this new development. Sure, she'd always considered Bakugou a friend, even if he didn't agree with her on that, but she never thought…he would think of her like this.

She didn't think she was his type.

And strangely enough she thought he seemed like he was excited that she'd confessed her feelings on the fly to him. He looked almost happy that she'd told him he was dead wrong about her and Deku. Why did that make her heart race?

Did she want to be with Bakugou? Did she want that kind of relationship?

Oh… and Deku…

How would she ever explain this to Izuku. Katsuki wasn't the type to keep secrets, and she knew he detested lying about anything, to such an extent that the girls in her class went to him if they ever needed a truly honest opinion about an outfit.

Seriously, she picked Deku's childhood friend and also bully to be her…well she didn't even know what you would call a boy you'd kissed twice and confessed feelings too, but it was more than a 'friend'.

She wished that she could telepathically tell Bakugou to come and talk to her NOW, she didn't know if she could wait until tomorrow. But then again, she didn't know if her heart could take any more surprise lip-locking, she already felt like she was on the verge of a boy-induced heart attack. Her legs went to jello whenever he touched her for more than 2 seconds.

As Ochako continued to replay a layout of possible scenarios in her brain for every outcome that could happen when she told people, or when Bakugou told people, or how she would relay this information to Iida and Deku but still retain a strong friendship with them, she was oblivious to the slow rise of the sun outside. It wasn't until the streams of light began creeping across her carpeted floor that she thought about the fact that she hadn't gotten a lick of slumber.

She jumped when her alarm blared violently, signaling that it was time for her to wake up and get ready for the day.

Groaning Uraraka got out of the sanctity of her covers and began to get dressed, she ran a comb through her tangled brown locks and tried to look presentable even though her nerves were totally fried. She glared at the minimal set of makeup laying on her desk.

She didn't wear much makeup day to day anyway, but for some reason she wanted to appear attractive. It couldn't hurt to apply some lip-gloss and a few swipes of mascara, right?

Would Bakugou notice? Why did she care if he noticed?

Uraraka glanced at her phone, she still had quite some time before class, they had an afternoon lesson instead of an early one today, maybe she should take a long and hard walk to shake off some of her anxiety before she had to see anybody else. That would help, she thought to herself as she turned to door knob to exit her room and came face to face with a plain, curly-haired, and freckled boy that was all too familiar.

"D-Deku-kun…" she blurted out, starstruck by his sudden appearance.

She saw his complexion color itself darker and deeper shades of red as the seconds ticked by.

"U-Uraraka-san! Got a minute?"

* * *

Katsuki Bakugou awoke early, just as the sun was awakening itself. It was too damn early in his opinion as he growled hoarsely and rubbed the sleep out of his red cat-like eyes.

He'd been having a good fucking dream too. Lots of explosions and victory and Deku's admission of defeat. It was nice, but now he was faced with the blank and boring ceiling of his dorm room.

"Tch." His typical scowl graced his irritated countenance as he rose out of bed and slipped on a pair of black sweatpants.

He headed towards the community showers to wash the sticky feeling off of his body and destroy the germs that had accumulated in his mouth overnight.

Kirishima always chastised him for going through tooth brushes so quickly. But if any fucker alive had experienced what he had gone through in middle school they wouldn't dare to even crack a smile.

When you'd tasted and breathed in the stench of sludge, especially living sludge, you never came back from it. Sometimes, he still remembered that foul, vile odor and it made him queasy. He'd spent days trying to rid that scent from his skin.

He welcomed the mint-flavored paste on his pallet as he scrubbed away at his pearly whites.

When he'd finished, and splashed his face in the sink, he realized he moronically forgotten a towel and turned to stalk back and retrieve one from his room.

However, along the way he heard commotion coming from Uraraka's door only a few feet away, and paused before turning the corner. He had intended to speak with her after class that day, to figure out what the hell this thing they were doing was. He wanted to know why the hell she had feelings for him of all people when and figure out why that fact made him feel like his body was on fucking fire. But when he heard Deku's voice drift into his ear, he felt a pang of bitter disappointment.

"Uraraka-san I need to ask you something…and it's um…it's embarrassing." Katsuki resisted the urge to groan at the nerd's girly voice, and settled to roll his eyes instead. God, he was so irritating.

"Of course, Deku what is it?" Katsuki's ears perked when he heard her high-pitched voice, she must've just woken up because her tone was still groggy.

"Uraraka-san is true that you have feelings, for me?" Katsuki froze at the question. That little bastard! It felt like every second before Uraraka finally answered was like an eternity. The silence seemed to last forever.

"…yes." She squeaked timidly.

Katsuki felt confusion and a wave of heaviness overcome him. What the hell was she saying? Had she lied to him last night? Was all of it an act, all this time? Every single bit?

"I see." Deku responded vaguely.

"But! Deku it's not what you think anymore! I don't feel like that about you now…" Katsuki willed himself to continue listening, the weight that had appeared lightening.

"When we took the provisional license exams…no maybe even before that, I felt something for you. I thought it might even be love. But I realized no matter how much I admired you, and no matter how cool you seemed, those feelings were keeping me from fulfilling my dream."

There was another long pause and then he heard a quiet waver in Uraraka's voice.

"Those feelings for you were holding me back from becoming a great hero and my jealousy about others that you came into contact with was blinding me. I decided that I couldn't continue to have that distracting me. I knew you didn't let anything you feel, regardless of if you ever felt that way about me, block you from the path you set out on Deku. That's what makes you so amazing. And I want to be that amazing too." Uraraka was crying, Katsuki was too familiar with the sound for his own comfort. He wanted to pull her against him and silence her sobs with his lips.

"Uraraka-san…I didn't realize how much you were carrying this with you all this time. I'm sorry I didn't notice sooner. I think you know, I can't focus on anything except becoming the number one hero and meeting the expectations that others have placed on me…" Bakugou heard a slight shuffling of feet.

"If I could afford to wait and take time for other things, I swear I would see where this went…but I can't do this with you. And I can't ask you to hold out for me." Bakugou prickled once again.

"I-I guess, even though I have feelings for somebody else, it still stings to get rejected by you…damn." Uraraka laughed brokenly through her tears. Katsuki thought it was endearing when she swore. She only ever did it when she was upset.

"Uraraka-san, we can still be friends, right?" Bakugou heard an audible thud, like a fist hitting against a chest.

"Of course, you idiot!"

Bakugou thought over Uraraka's words carefully as he exited the scene, he didn't know Uraraka had felt something more than a stupid crush for the damn nerd. It bothered him to know.

He hadn't even stopped to consider why she had never done anything about her feelings for him. If her love life had hindered her once from being a hero, wouldn't it just be the same again if he and her decided they wanted this thing between them to become more than what it already was?

A sharp realization stung him.

He couldn't do this to Uraraka. He couldn't selfishly give in to what his own feelings were craving. When it came to the gravity-wielding girl he hated to think he had a soft spot. He didn't want to admit he had a weakness of any sort. But, he wanted her to succeed. He knew what her sheer strength was like first-hand.

He couldn't stand in the way of that…right?

She was one of the ones who he thought could actually make it as a pro. If he became a 'distraction' like Deku had, could he live with those repercussions?

* * *

Uraraka was abruptly startled later that evening by a rapid knock at the door. She was certain this time of who would be on the other side. When she opened the door and let him inside, she felt as relieved as she did nervous when he walked past her.

She'd been awaiting this conversation all day long, and was confused as to why he had skipped out on their training lesson that afternoon. The entire class, including Kirishima didn't know where he was. She wondered if it had been to avoid her. But pushed the thought away quickly.

Her heart was stuck still in her throat when their eyes met. Brown clashing against red.

Bakugou fought every single instinct in his body to grab Uraraka and ravish her body in all of the vile ways his imagination could conjure up. He wanted to kiss her, to feel her. He didn't want to have the conversation coming. That slightly afraid look inside her brown orbs coupled with her still looking right at him, made him fucking crazy. He wanted to take her now. Skip ahead and hit the jackpot.

But…that was not what he came to her to do.

"We need to talk." He said bluntly trying to deaden his expression so her acutely perceptive abilities wouldn't see through his bullshit lies that he was about to spout off.

He couldn't stand in the way of her future. He…cared too much about it.

"Okay." She stammered, her arms crossed under her ample chest nervously. Bakugou sighed and resolved himself to speak, knowing it might be the last conversation he had with Ochako.

"What the hell do you want from me Uraraka?" he hadn't intended for the tone in his question to come across so frigidly cold and indifferent, but he was certain the only way he could get this girl to continue chasing her goals was too make her hate him with every fiber in her being.

Uraraka was too forgiving and understanding for him to approach it any other way.

If she hated him then maybe he would be able to contain and sacrifice his own desires for her sake. Her hatred would help him suppress his longing for her company.

"What?" she asked, clearly confused.

"I'm sorry, let me get to the point here. I'm not the one shoving my tongue down everyone's throat round-face." He steeled his crimson orbs when hurt flashed across her expression, cutting into him like a sharpened knife.

"Y-You're the one who kissed me earlier Bakugou." Her voice was eerily calm but also grating on edge, he could tell that she was trying not to show him how upset she was. He could feel that this was not what she had expected from him.

"Look…" he started, tearing his eyes away from her incredulous expression and instead scrutinizing the floor.

"…neither of us need a distraction like this anyway okay? So just leave me the fuck alone and I'll do the same." He was a fucking coward for not looking at the pain in Uraraka's delicate features, and the tears that were welling in her eyes. He should have forced himself to see what kind of shock he had created in her.

"W…What did you say?" her voice was disbelieving and quiet. His hands clenched into fists so tight that his knuckles paled.

 _I don't mean it._ He thought to himself, his jaw stiffening.

 _I'm doing this for you._

"Katsuki!" he felt Uraraka's small slender fingers grip his t-shirt tightly. Her arms were vibrating in a jumbled mix of anger and confusion. He finally looked back to her to see the tears staining a pathway down her pinkish cheeks and dripping carelessly unto her tank top.

The tears only intensified the look of betrayal that lingered in her normally bright chocolate depths. He wanted to punch himself square in the face.

"You're so full of it. Don't tell me that you honestly feel this way when…when you…" He placed a hand solidly around her shaking wrist, and looked at her straight on.

"It's not a lie, I'm fucking serious. I don't have time for this kind of shit anyways." That statement was the final straw it took to make her completely fall apart. He was certain that she hated him now for making her feel like she didn't matter. Like everything, all the tension between them, the kisses, and even the brief brushes of their skin, was all nothing to him.

He deserved her malice and her anger. He deserved to suffer terribly for making Uraraka feel this way.

"Liar…" she whimpered pitifully, every strain in her words torturing his mind.

His resolve was crumbling away as he felt every tremor that ran throughout her petite body. He knew she was trying to appear strong and undeterred, and that broke him.

He pulled her hands away from his torso and let them drop to dangle by her sides loosely as he exited the room without another word, leaving her in the stormy atmosphere he'd created all alone.

He was such an asshole.

When he finally shut the door completely, he let out a quivering breath he didn't realize he'd been holding in. Anger seared hotly through his veins as he replayed what he had done in his mind. Flashes of Uraraka's face playing across his lids.

His frustration melted away and turned into an all-consuming guilt as he heard Uraraka's sobs choke out from behind the door, tearing down the mask he'd put on to face her. Every cry she let out only made him sink further into a hole he'd dug for himself.

She would never forgive him for this.

* * *

 **A/N: Just posting this note here at the end temporarily, but I wanted to let anyone know that this story will be on a brief break. After reviewing the first several chapters to this fic I'm really frustrated with how they were written. So I'm going to go back and edit all of them, and probably tweak some minor details in the process.**

 **I** **'ll put a reminder of this in the next update with Chapter 14, but for anyone already progressed this far, my edits shouldn't call for going back and re-reading this fic in it's entirety, unless you want to :)**

 **Thank you for being patient and understanding!**


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